Unity
by MegaKat
Summary: Having been at war for five years, the people of Queen Serenity's and King Vegeta's kingdoms have come to a stalemate. Princess Serenity is demanded as part of the peace agreement, but fearing for her daughter's safety and happiness, Serenity makes Vegeta an offer he can't refuse... (Yes, this is Usagi's mom and Vegeta's dad, yall... and rated M for a reason!)
1. Chapter 1

**So! I've been working on this little gem for a few months, and I finally decided that I have enough inspiration to post it! This will be likely be a long fic, honestly, and once I reach a certain point, I may be slow to update because inspiration. **

**That said, thank you to AnaFrost for the title! I simply couldn't come up with one and she's awesome for sitting with me for a couple minutes and suggesting something perfect after only a little bit of back and forth!**

**So, there will be more than just this main pairing, and I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to write it, like in parts or something, but I reckon it'll all come together like everything else I write! So R&R yall! Reviews equals inspiration and drive to continue! **

**Oh! And THIRTY pages + for the first night, people! I'll have the update ready to go by Monday!**

"No. Out of the question," Serenity hissed icily. "Your suggested terms are not negotiable, King Vegeta."

"Which part of them, woman?" He growled back softly.

"The part where you throw my daughter into one of your generals' beds!" She shrieked, losing the quiet, frosty note to her voice, only to have it replaced with boiling hot anger. "My daughter is not part of these proceedings, and if you bring it up again I will unleash all of my fury upon your people!"

"And I will retaliate as such," Vegeta rumbled calmly, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "Which would only bring us right back to the negotiation table in another six months. I would have offered my son and the crowned prince of Vegeta-sai, but you know as well as I do that he felt the pull during the siege on Mercury."

"For Ami's cousin, yes, tying him to my kingdom. I know… but it doesn't matter if you offer even _yourself_ to sweeten that deal, Vegeta, my little girl is _not_ part of these negotiations. She's barely even twenty, still innocent to the ways of men. I will not send her to Vegeta-sai to have her poorly used by some brutish pig of a warrior!"

Serenity didn't know why the king's face instantly softened for a brief second—he'd never once shown mercy or compassion during the five year war between his people and her kingdom, only calling a cease-fire when he'd realized that they'd wind up at a stalemate—but if she could have seen the panic and the tears in her own eyes, she would have known. But she latched onto that brief flicker of softness in desperation, not above pleading for the only person she'd ever truly loved. "Please," she whispered. "Not my daughter. Anyone but her…"

Serenity wiped at her eyes to keep the tears building up in them from falling, looking down and away from the king, unwilling to see his disapproval at her show of emotion. Saiyans never showed much emotion in public and considered such a display weak, but damn it, she did not, and she was only getting emotional because she knew what she had to do.

The only prize better than her own daughter was herself, and Serenity knew that for Usagi to be taken off the negotiation table, she had to sweeten the pot. "I… if you wish, I offer myself in exchange," she breathed shakily, her hands and lower lip trembling, the queen knowing instinctively that she would not be offered to any general in King Vegeta's Elite guard.

Oh no, such a prize as herself would be herded straight into _his_ bed upon her arrival.

Knowing that she knew this, King Vegeta studied her closely for what seemed like a century, the glitter of very real interest in his eyes unmistakable and setting Serenity's face to burning like a sunset. "You would not be ill-treated," the king promised softly in an obvious attempt to soothe her frayed nerves. "Surely better than your late king treated you, if the stories I've heard are true."

"This is another negotiation?" She whispered nervously.

"No, woman. This is an attempt to get that utterly terrified look off of your face," Vegeta snorted humorlessly. "Despite my reputation and what you've witnessed of me on the battlefield, that same ferocity would never extend towards my mate. Or the bedroom."

Serenity nodded slowly and swallowed her tears before looking back up at the screen in the empty conference room, steeling herself for the response she knew she would have to give to save her precious daughter from the same fate. Even if that fate was beginning to sound not so awful. If the merciless king of the Saiyans could show kindness, perhaps his men were not all bad, either. "Your terms regarding this pairing?" She asked fretfully, trying not to wring her hands in front of him and failing dreadfully.

"Your king died only a few months after you conceived your heir. I would like to know if you can bear more children, and if you're even willing to do so," Vegeta replied carefully, knowing that he was treading on hallowed ground.

"I am fertile, yes. For another several thousand years, in fact," she added, her face burning brightly. "Bearing more children is not something I am opposed to."

While her answer was satisfactory, there was a glint of steel in her eyes that made the king give pause, and he decided for the sake of self-preservation to address the elephant in the room. "Your king died quite violently while you carried the princess," he repeated stonily. "I would know the circumstances of his death."

The king was pleasantly surprised to see that ice return to her stare, and actually cracked the tiniest of smiles when she replied, "two friends can keep a secret if one of them is dead."

"Ah, but I'm not your friend, woman," he chuckled. "I'm a prospective mate, and it is within my rights to ask about your previous mate, especially if his death was… suspicious." King Vegeta waited patiently, and when she looked around to assure herself that she was truly alone, he knew he was going to get an answer to the question that had been burning in everyone's mind for over twenty years.

"You were not misinformed about the king's less than kind treatment," Serenity said evenly, her back going arrow-straight and her eyes hardening. "And when he continued to take out his displeasure upon me while I was carrying his child, I chose my daughter's life over his. Are you satisfied, King Vegeta? Or shall I give you the gory details?"

The king couldn't help but grin a bit and tipped his head. "I'm Saiyan, my lady," he purred as he addressed her respectfully for only the second time in their discussion. "I love the gory details."

"He came at me, so I drew a knife I had hidden in my bodice and I stabbed him in the throat. Setsuna found me covered in his blood and she cleaned up the mess. And I'll warn you now," she added bravely, her brow furrowing with remembered rage, "if you ever raise a hand to me in a similar manner, I won't hesitate to stab you the very _first_ time. I'm no longer a girl of sixteen and I will not tolerate violence in any marriage, even if that marriage is one born of harsh political realities and sacrifice."

"A Saiyan male would never strike his mate outside of sanctioned combat or a spar," Vegeta assured her, that little smile playing over his lips still, communicating that he was actually a bit impressed by the backbone she'd just shown him. "As I've said, you will not be harmed or mistreated in any way, my lady."

There it was again, 'my lady.' Taking a chance on that nuance of respect, Serenity nodded slowly. "You have a deal… my king. I… I will require some time… to pack my things, to say my farewells to my retainers, and for my daughter to learn to use the crystal for the first time so that she may teleport me to Vegeta-sai. I will obviously be leaving my kingdom's greatest weapon with her."

King Vegeta graciously smiled as he caught her eyes flicking over him, studying him in the same manner that he had looked her over when she'd made her offer, and he couldn't help but feel a bit smug when her face colored afresh the moment her gaze lingered just below his waist. "I trust that you will not keep your betrothed waiting for an unnecessary amount of time, Serenity." That smile got even smugger when her cheeks reddened further at the sound of him drawling out her name lazily. "I only ask that you call me daily if whatever you need to do is going to take longer than twenty-four hours."

"Princess Serenity has never handled the crystal before, so I haven't the faintest idea how long it might take her to amass the proper amount of power," the queen admitted. "Not only that, but… I'm positive that she will be a tad hysterical when she learns that I'm leaving. It may take a few days… Vegeta."

"The delightfully shy way you just said my name makes it worth the wait, Serenity."

Dear gods, could she have gotten any fucking redder in the face!? Hell… had he just actually… _flirted_… with _her_!?

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"But you CAN'T!"

Fighting down the urge to cover her ears against her daughter's high-pitched scream of defiance, Serenity simply shook her head and sighed, catching the princess when she wrapped her arms around her tightly and began to sob uncontrollably. "Shh… Usa, my little rabbit… it's alright."

"But you _can't_," Princess Serenity sobbed out helplessly. "You can't, Mother! You can't marry that—that _heartless warmonger_!"

"It was either you or me, dearest Usagi, and I would not have you married off to one of King Vegeta's generals. Being a queen, I will not be married to anyone but the king himself. And he has already promised that I will not be ill-treated."

"Call him back." The princess couldn't stop crying, couldn't stop the clenching ache in her heart at the thought of losing her mother to the enemy, and simply couldn't allow the queen to be taken when the loss of herself—only a princess—would be a lesser blow to their kingdom. "We need you to rule, Mother! I don't know how to do it! Call him back and tell him that I willingly offer myself in your stead! I'll marry whomever he wants, just please don't let yourself be taken as a captive!"

Serenity guided her daughter to the bed then and gently stroked her fingers through her hair as soothingly as possible, using her light to calm her. "I won't be a captive, Usagi. I'll be the queen of Vegeta-sai." Ok, it was probably a lie, she'd probably be used as nothing more than legitimately acquired breeding stock, a legal consort to produce more heirs to the throne. But maybe, given time, she'd be elevated in status to queen. Ok, probably not, but if a fib calmed her daughter down and brought her back from the edge of hysterics, she'd tell a million of them. "And he has already vowed to treat me kindly. Now, we don't have much time. I need to give you the crystal, and I need you to learn how to use it so that you can teleport me to Vegeta-sai. I won't be taking our greatest weapon into the lions' den."

"I won't send you anywhere," the princess whimpered. "You can't make me."

Serenity sat her up then and looked at her sternly despite the miserable expression on her only child's face and the mess of tears pouring down her perfect face. "You would make your mother a liar and a breaker of oaths? You would tarnish my honor and cast us back into war?"

"But _**Mother**_-!"

"No buts, Serenity." The queen deftly removed the crystal from her body then and pushed it into her daughter's chest without any fanfare. "It's yours, now. All of the power of my mother, all of the power that our people look to for guidance and our enemies fear greater than even the Saiyan Armada. Use it wisely and rule them well."

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"You have to do it, Usa."

The princess of the Moon Kingdom shook her head defiantly and buried her face in Rei's hair, her best friend sighing into her own blond locks before gently pushing her away. "Your mother's right, Usagi. You have to do this. A deal's been made and your mother can't go back on it. You know that."

"I wish great-grandaddy was still alive," the princess whispered mournfully for the millionth time in two days. "We would have won the war and Mother wouldn't be forced to marry a man she hates."

"I don't hate anyone," Serenity quickly corrected her despite the fact that her statement was a fib, "and neither should you. Now," she added gently, "teleport me to Vegeta-sai, my darling. Everything will be alright in the end, I swear it. And no more crying and wallowing in sorrow, either. At least not so much. You're the queen now, Usa, and your people will look to you for guidance, so if they see you only mourning me as if I was dead, they'll only do the same. And I am not dead."

"Yes, Mother," her daughter replied with a sniffle, raising her hand to the soft glow in her chest. "I love you," she added as strongly as possible before doing as Serenity had taught her last night, drawing easily on the power of the ginzuishou.

"And I you, my daughter," the queen answered sincerely, trying not to hold her breath out of fear. She'd hoped and prayed to be spared from King Vegeta's bed for at least a few days, if not a week, but no—the Fates had laughed at her request. Usagi, possessing a truly pure heart, had immediately wielded the Silver Crystal with an ease that Serenity had never known. _No, my heart was stained the moment Alaric taught me how to hate, and then it became even darker when he forced my hand and I murdered him. Self-defense or not, it changed me._

"Momma, don't cry," Usagi whispered. "Please don't cry… I… I don't think I can send you to him if you start crying."

"It's alright," Serenity assured her. "Just do it."

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Serenity blinked, swaying in place, and was relieved to feel two arms steady her, the hands on her shoulders gentle and a voice rumbling with concern in her ears. She couldn't hear it exactly, though, her ear drums were ringing from the sudden change in gravity, and the queen trembled in reaction to it, her legs quivering beneath her gown as she automatically attempted to tap into the crystal to compensate.

A porcelain hand shook as it tried to raise defensively to her chest when she found herself unable to draw breath, and in a panic she wasted the air in her lungs to speak a single word—"help!"— the syllable coming out of her sounding of pure, unadulterated panic. _Oh gods no, I never thought to take anything with me to counteract the gravity! _"Help!" She mouthed soundlessly when her blurry eyes showed a figure stepping around her, tall, but obscured to her fading vision, the sensation of the hands on her shoulders shifting to her forearms as the warrior who had steadied her continued to do so as he looked down at her. "Can't breathe!" She added silently.

Serenity sucked in a panicked lungful of air the moment she felt the atmosphere around her lift, gratefully accepting the arms slipping around her waist in a clear offer to take her weight when her legs gave out, her hands trembling against a broad, muscular chest while her heart raced from the effects of fear-induced adrenaline, slowly calming at the scent of fire and snow in her nose.

Sound returned to her in a rush then, and she attempted to steady herself when she heard a low voice in her ear repeating her name, concern heavy in its tone. "I'll… I'll be fine," she managed in a terrified whisper. "T—Thank you. F—f—for whatever you did."

"I created a ki shield and manipulated the gravity inside of it, my lady. You are unharmed? Any broken bones? Do I need to send for a physician?"

The 'my lady' struck her like a sack of rocks, and Serenity turned the color of a sunset when she realized that the strong muscles effortlessly supporting almost all of her weight belonged to the king, that the comforting scent of a fire on a cold night in her nose was _his _scent_. _"I… I think I'm unharmed, thank you… my king." She felt a hand between her breasts then and nearly protested the lewd action, but she was filled with a sweet warmth that made her gasp with pleasure, reflecting that she'd never felt so utterly safe in her entire life.

And it remained inside of her as she felt the gravity return to normal, but still somehow managed to maintain her ability to breathe as the warmth flowed through her, into her limbs, giving them a level of physical strength she'd never felt. "What…?"

"I shared my ki with you, Serenity," Vegeta rumbled, checking her over carefully as he circled her, only returning to study her face up close once he was positive that she was uninjured. "Just focus on breathing and standing, woman, take your time to grow accustomed to the extra power. I'll share with you as often as you require, just inform me if you feel weak."

Her vision was clear, and something in his eyes as she bravely dared to look up told her that sharing one's ki was not a common practice among his people. Saiyans revered the strong and left the weak to die, it was a known fact. So for him to share his strength with her… "Thank you, Vegeta," she whispered, cursing her voice for sounding so breathless. "I am deeply grateful for your kindness."

Those black eyes twinkled with amusement at her words, and Vegeta's lips actually twitched despite the throng of Saiyan Elite standing at attention within spitting distance. "I believe that kindness was a part of our terms of agreement," he whispered just low enough for only her to hear.

"_Ve'sh m'yo_," he added a bit louder, "would you care to rest and let your body adjust to my ki and the gravity of your new home?"

Serenity noted the way that all of the Elite straightened and almost imperceptibly trained their eyes to the side and indirectly at her, studying her discreetly, sizing her up, then just as quickly looking away. Now was not the time to seem meek; she needed to appear brave, unafraid and act as if she could take any one of them on in a real fight and do some damage. "No, my king, but I thank you for your consideration. I would like a quick tour of my new home, though… would that be asking too much?"

"Not at all." Vegeta's tiny smirk told her that he knew exactly what she was doing, and the flicker in his eyes told her that he very much approved of it as he offered her his arm and nodded at a guard. "Take my mate's things to our quarters; we will be heading to them soon." Once they were out of earshot and well down a hallway, the king addressed her out of the corner of his mouth. "If I knew you were this damned physically weak, I would have turned you down and demanded the princess for my strongest warrior, instead."

Serenity bristled immediately at that, and thanks to the ki he'd shared with her, she actually punched his shoulder hard enough to make him wince. "I don't have the crystal anymore, asshole. With it, I was personally invincible, but since I only lost it a little over an hour ago, I'm adjusting to being as weak as a kitten! So I would thank you to keep your big yap shut when insulting a lady and your future queen!"

"You'll be taught to use your ki, then," he replied gruffly. "While I do not mind sharing mine with my mate, I would have that mate capable of defending herself at least long enough for help to arrive. We're a warrior people, as you know, Serenity," he added a bit more gently when she scowled at him. "Anyone could challenge you to a fight just for the hell of it, and my mark on your shoulder will only grant you so much leniency in declining challenge after challenge. Unless, of course…" He grinned a bit and leered at her a little, his hand sliding briefly over her belly. "Women carrying a brat are automatically untouchable."

The queen flushed at that immediately, but didn't dismiss the suggestion right away. "Whatever is your wish, my king," she finally stated.

Vegeta seemed slightly surprised but satisfied by her answer, and he studied her as he offered his arm once more and escorted her towards a palace garden. "I want more brats, woman, but I think it would be wise for us to flesh out our relationship and get comfortable with each other before we start making them. After all, you and I were mortal enemies only yesterday."

He was pleased when she lost the stiffness to her always straight-backed posture, obviously relieved that he wouldn't be expecting her to bear heirs anytime soon. "So, you'll wait, then? To consummate this marriage?" She asked hopefully.

Vegeta snorted and shook his head, but graced her with a tiny, helpless shrug. "Serenity, if I don't mark you and bed you, that leaves a chance that someone else could try to. My apologies, but I would much rather not take that risk." The flicker of sadness that radiated from her eyes to the rest of her body made him sigh, and Vegeta stopped her near a fiery-looking bush with bright red leaves. "If you wish to court, I'll arrange some outings for the both of us. But the biting and bedding needs to happen tonight. Is that acceptable?"

"I suppose it'll have to be," she murmured. "While you're veiling your demand in a polite request, it's still a demand. Though I appreciate the offer to… soften the blow, I suppose." They were walking again, and Serenity only realized that she'd totally not even looked at the garden he'd walked her through, feeling a pang of guilt for being rude. "My mind is not focusing well on this tour," she admitted. "We may as well head to your quarters, my king."

"Our quarters," he corrected her automatically, hearing the slight edge of bitterness to her tone, making him inwardly sigh. "In a hurry to get this out of the way?" He managed wryly, trying his best to lighten the mood.

"I meant no offense," Serenity said quickly, cringing at how she must have sounded. "It's just that I've been nervous since our peace talk," she admitted.

The king caught the way her eyes were flickering over him again, taking in his massive form, her expression hard to read as she seemed to close herself off behind some sort of impenetrable royal wall. He led her up a stairwell nearby though, taking her the back way to their chambers, and Vegeta was pleased to find that everything she'd brought with her—surprisingly little for a woman, in his opinion—was waiting at the foot of the dresser. "I'll call for some food while you arrange your possessions, _k'sha m'yo_," he offered.

Serenity could only nod, too shaky from the sight of the massive bed in the center of the room for her to even manage the most basic of a thank you, and she tried to busy herself by unpacking a bag full of pictures, arranging them carefully on the top of an empty chest of drawers. "My daughter and her new retainers," she explained when she felt him watching over her shoulder, studying the newest picture she'd placed beside an old snapshot of herself holding a blonde newborn, her own silver hair sweaty and in disarray about her, her mouth curled up in the exhausted, satisfied smile that nearly all mothers wore after their first hard-won fight to bring life into the world.

"The princess looks downright _pissed_ in this picture," Vegeta remarked casually, noting that the four girls flanking her didn't look too happy, either.

"It was taken an hour ago," the queen replied dryly, "just after I handed her the greatest weapon in the universe and told her that her mother would be marrying the enemy, never to return to the moon. I'm amazed that she wasn't bawling her eyes out."

"I never once said you couldn't go home to visit, Serenity," Vegeta growled down at her. "Once we're fully pair-bonded you may do as you wish; the mating bond will allow me to know where you are and that you're safe, should you decide to leave." He sensed her genuine surprise but decided not to comment on it, instead touching the silver frame of the picture after she'd given birth. "You haven't aged a day from this photograph."

"I was seventeen… my people, they age the same as Saiyans, though we live much longer." The queen managed a tiny smile when she felt a hand on her shoulder, remembering her manners. "And I thank you. My little rabbit will be ecstatic to hear that I'll be able to visit her. Usagi was quite… _distraught _when I told her that I was fairly sure I wouldn't be allowed to leave Vegeta-sai."

"Usagi?" The king asked in confusion.

Serenity turned and blushed when she nearly collided with his chest. "It gets confusing with two Serenities being constantly called for. Usagi means 'rabbit.' Don't you have a name for your son that only you or his close friends use?"

Vegeta snorted at that and actually chuckled at the thought of calling his heir by anything but his name and shook his head. "Closest thing we get to pet names is 'boy' or 'son,' Serenity. Though I assure you, the prince gets called plenty of other things, even by his closest companions. And especially by that blue-haired princess from Mercury," he added with a sputter. "Ye gods, the _mouth_ on that woman. How she's related to a woman like Athena or Ami is beyond me."

Feeling companionable as they both chuckled, Serenity nodded and allowed the king to take her arm and escort her to the bed, where she perched on the end of it with a minimal blush, grateful when he sat beside her but only continued to talk.

"The boy can't even claim the girl," he snickered. "I tried like hell to get him to take an interest in women when he turned fifteen, to convince him that he should produce some brats and get ahead of the game, but even when his first burning hit him like a sack of Saibamen, Vegeta just locked himself in a training room and powered through it. Though I appreciate his dedication to training, I simply can't even begin to understand why the boy remains a virgin."

"Maybe it's his wonderfully sunny personality," Serenity suggested cheekily. "Your son isn't exactly mister charisma, Your Majesty."

Vegeta had to allow a laugh at that and nodded a bit, reflecting that he would have blasted anyone else for such a comment. But this woman was to be his mate, so she would be allowed certain liberties in private. "I hope it'll just all work itself out. Either that, or that woman will run out of firepower to stop freezing his nads with." Sensing that she was relaxing even though his arm was wound loosely about her waist, the king smoothly scooted a bit closer and allowed his tail to free itself, trailing the tip of it down her spine, pleased with the little shiver that immediately ran through her. "Thankfully for you, my queen, my son did not inherit his awkwardness with women from _my_ side of the family."

Serenity had no response to that and Vegeta felt her go rigid, her back growing impossibly straighter. "I'm not going to hurt you, woman," he sputtered in annoyance, tipping her chin up and to the side with his fingertips to make her look at him. His inner beast growled angrily at the sight of pure fear in her eyes, and judging by the way her lower lip began to tremble, his beast's unhappiness had bled through onto his face.

"I do not mean to displease you, my king," she whispered shakily.

Vegeta could only manage a choked sound of frustration and simply released her, stood from the bed, and stripped off his armor to leave himself in his fatigues and a black tank top. "You stay here and rest, woman," he ordered roughly. "I'm going to the ring for a few hours." The confused hope in her eyes made him stop and sputter, and he rubbed at the bridge of his nose as he tried to get his beast under control for the first time in decades. Gods, it was climbing the walls over her already and they hadn't even bitten each other! "I won't take you. Not like this. I want to see desire in your eyes, Serenity, not terror."

While she more than appreciated his kindness, the queen shook her head and met his gaze bravely. "I'm not afraid of you," she admitted. "At least… I don't think I am. I'm… I'm afraid of…" Serenity swallowed, trying like hell to think of how to explain herself, her hands fluttering in her lap like a pair of wounded birds.

"He gave you only pain," the king guessed quietly, his voice bordering on gentle in his genuine sympathy for her. Vegeta was crossing the room again and perching beside her on the bed as she nodded fretfully, and he used his calloused hands to ease her face up again so he could look her in the eye. "If you'd extend a modicum of trust, my lady…?"

Serenity closed her eyes for what seemed like a long time, but she finally nodded wearily, forcing every muscle in her lithe body to relax when she felt a hand on her back slowly drawing down the zipper of her dress, exposing a ribbon of pale flesh and silver silk just above the line of her undergarments. She wasn't sure what she expected next, but it certainly wasn't to feel his large hands deftly removing the pins from her hair to make it tumble around her loosely. "What?" She asked when she looked up to find him staring.

"I was reflecting that your hairstyle is what most makes you look like… you," he remarked. "That without it, you seem almost approachable. Young, even. You are young, yes," he amended, "but the invincible Queen Serenity of the Moon Kingdom doesn't exactly strike her enemies as young and inexperienced, either."

"The hair is part of my trademark, yes," she agreed, knowing exactly what he meant. "As is yours," she managed at a weak attempt at levity. The joke didn't quite hit home, however, since she was overly aware of the fact that she would be half-naked and exposed in front of the most notorious killer in the universe if she simply stood and let her dress fall.

Giving her a little time to adjust, Vegeta focused on unlacing his boots and removing his socks, and finally set his tank top on top of them all, leaving him in only his tight fatigues. He cracked a tiny smirk when he found the queen's eyes trained on his chest, and fighting the urge to flex and act like a hormonally retarded teenager, he simply let her look. "So…" He finally managed, his lips still twitching upwards when she glanced back up at his face. "Are there any Lunarian traditions for bedding that I should be aware of? Anything strange that I might have to wrap my head around? I don't need to dance like a trained monkey or anything, do I?"

Unable to stop herself, the queen actually giggled at the mental image of King Vegeta doing just that and finally shook her head. "A wedding usually takes place beforehand, but I'm under the assumption that Saiyans don't bother with such things."

"No," he affirmed. "The biting can be made into a public affair, and usually is when a king or a prince is taking a mate, but I thought to spare you from feeling embarrassed before the Elite since I don't know your customs. While the people will clamor for a public ceremony of sorts, I can stave off such a thing until you feel more comfortable with the idea."

"Thank you, the thought of my recent enemies seeing me in excruciating pain was… unsettling," she confessed, only to be surprised by the way his posture shifted to defensive. "I apologize?" She asked softly, unsure what he was offended about. "While I'm sure you would have tried to spare me too much pain, sinking one's teeth into another's shoulder appears to be quite agonizing no matter how gently you do it."

"The mating bite isn't _painful,_" Vegeta snorted, placated by her ignorance, having thought before her explanation that she expected him to hurt her on purpose. "It's ridiculously arousing and feels absolutely amazing." He bent his head to only give her a taste of the pleasure he was speaking of, but she immediately balked and he sighed. "Hold still," he grumped, more exasperated with her than angry.

Serenity instantly froze, but she trembled slightly, her eyes squinted shut… and then gasped when his teeth closed over her shoulder, tightening… tightening… _Dear gods, that feels… wonderful…_

She was panting from the unfamiliar feeling of warmth growing between her thighs, and when she emitted a soft whimper of pleasure, the queen was disappointed to feel his mouth release her flesh just short of puncturing the skin, leaving a circular bruise.

Pleased with the flicker of desire he found in her eyes and the scent of her arousal, Vegeta just gave her a tiny, smug smile when he looked up at her. "Told you so," he rumbled. "Now, if you're satisfied that I'm _not_ going to harm you…?"

Serenity looked behind her nervously to the great expanse of the rest of bed, but swallowed and nodded slightly, standing on wobbly knees to allow her dress to fall to the floor, thankful that her hair was lying in such a way that she was still mostly covered. "While I appreciate your assurances that you won't harm me, I promise you that I won't make a huge fuss during the most uncomfortable parts of the consummation," she whispered with a dark blush. "I'm no stranger to that kind of discomfort, nor am I a total sissy."

Vegeta was flat-out confused while he watched her climb onto the bed and arrange herself in the center, confused enough that it was overwhelming his arousal at the sight of her breasts just barely covered by a thick curtain of silver. But then he put two and two together and growled softly in anger—not for her, but for the complete and utter jackass that had had her virginity and had beaten her throughout her first marriage.

Running his hand through his upswept mane, the king decided that talk was far too cheap right then, that actions would show her just how wrong she was about how things were supposed to be between mates, and he silently vowed that he was going to make her come at least twice before he finally took her.

Leaving his pants on for the time being, Vegeta joined her in the bed, stretching out beside her, and allowed his beast some control, watching as his tail idly began to stroke the upper hem of her slip. "Is there anything about mating that you _do_ enjoy, _k'sha m'yo_?" He asked nonchalantly in an attempt to help erase her obvious nervousness and fear.

"Despite it all, I always did enjoy the kissing," she whispered up at him shyly, feeling a little wave of gratitude running through her, appreciating that he hadn't just rolled on top of her and stripped her down to take his pleasure.

Vegeta's face lit up at that and he thought for a moment that this might not be as awkward as he thought it would be. "That's a little fast, but I'll admit that I've always enjoyed kissing as well. Lay back and relax," he purred, his beast thrilled that she was already willing to let him do something to please her.

Serenity did as she was told and let her eyes flutter shut in anticipation, her lips already tingling at the thought of what his beard might feel like as he claimed her mouth. But when a moment passed and she felt the king pushing her half-slip up, she blinked in surprise.

His tongue slipped between her thighs, parting her folds before she could word the question to ask what he was doing, and Serenity yelped and immediately tried to scramble away from such a shock to her ladylike sensibilities, her knees pushing at his shoulders, actually forcing him back.

Vegeta blinked, the action a pure twin of her own initial surprise, and when he looked up to find her staring at him owlishly, he could only lift a questioning brow, silently asking what he'd just done wrong.

Serenity somehow found her voice, though it was shaky from the way her inner thighs tingled where his beard had caressed her skin, not to mention the slight ache she felt where his tongue had slowly stroked her. "I don't think kissing means on Vegeta-sai what it means on the moon," she squeaked.

"Well, I'll bet _that_ was quite the culture shock," he responded dryly without thinking, followed by a rough-sounding laugh at the hilarity of it all and a gentle nibble to one of her thighs.

Overwhelmed by his amusement, Serenity's armor of ladylike reserve actually fractured and she found herself emitting a girlish little giggle, followed by a genuine, belly-shaking laugh when the king only cracked up, laughing so hard that he was forced to rest his head on her stomach. "Can you say, 'awkward!?'" She cackled, part of her reflecting that Vegeta actually had a very nice, sexy laugh. _I'll bet no one hears it often, though. _That thought sobered her up, but her mouth was still twitching in a smile when the king slid back up and hovered over her.

The way she was growing serious again only made him determined to make her relax afresh, so Vegeta just grinned down at her boyishly. "Any other gaffes I should make, my queen? Does 'necking' on your planet mean something different than petting above the waist? Should I expect you to choke me or behead me instead?"

That made her giggle again and she nodded. "Yes, necking is petting above the waist and—and kissing," she added with another laugh. "But not _that_ kind of kissing!"

"Well, since I've embarrassed myself enough already, it doesn't bother me to ask what in the fuck you were asking me to do," he chuckled. "Care to educate the warrior heathen?"

"Only if you explain what in the hell _you_ were doing," she countered, honestly curious about what he'd been trying to achieve by kissing her in such a private place, even more interested in why it had left her tingling pleasurably.

"I was trying to get you off," he explained bluntly, studying her confused expression curiously. "I was going to make you come a few times to make you see that I'm more than willing to give pleasure as well as receive it," he tried, only to see her eyes grow even more confused and incredulous. "I think I understand now," he said slowly.

"Understand what, exactly?"

Swallowing more disgust for whatever manner of creature she'd been wedded to before, Vegeta simply dropped a peck to the crescent on her forehead and let his beast purr gently for the first time in decades, the sound making him start a bit. Gods, he hadn't made that noise since before Kalera had died in battle. "You'll see, Serenity. For now, I want you to make a huge leap of faith and just lie still and trust me."

"O—Ok," she managed hesitantly. "Did you still want to know what kissing is?" When he tipped his head a bit, Serenity summed up every ounce of her courage and leaned up, gently brushing her lips over his, repeating the action a little more firmly when he made an encouraging, pleased sound in the back of his throat. When he tentatively began to return it, she couldn't help the tiny sigh that came out of her as she instinctively began to relax, her body humming pleasurably from the only kind of pleasurable intimate contact she'd ever known, her lips pressing and moving against his as he grew more confident and began to take control of the gesture of affection.

Vegeta jerked slightly in surprise when he felt his queen's tongue flick over his lower lip, but he adjusted quickly and returned the action, and was struck by how good it felt the moment their tongues touched and she slid hers slowly over his. His beast was enjoying the kissing immensely as well, purring with desire, and it only took a minute before his cock was hard as steel and ready for her.

Serenity was broken out of her haze the moment she felt him pressing into her lower stomach and she pulled back, blushing at his obvious arousal. "I'll hold still, like you said," she whispered. "And… and trust you."

"Good," he breathed, his mouth already descending to her throat, his teeth and his tongue immediately making her squeeze her eyes shut and clutch at the bedspread beneath her. Vegeta sensed that that wasn't a good reaction, though, and guessing that she associated teeth with pain, he was overly cautious not to use them anymore and only pressed slow, open-mouthed kisses to her throat and just beneath the tip of her chin, letting his facial hair tickle her. "You don't have to be so quiet," he informed her, "I'd like to know if what I'm doing pleases you, Serenity. Or bothers you," he added as he slipped his mouth lower, letting his beard tickle the tops of her breasts. He was disappointed when he pushed her hair aside to bare her and slowly kissed a rosy nipple and she only responded with another tiny gasp, but she wasn't protesting, so he followed up with a flick of his tongue.

He didn't look up to see the way her eyelids fluttered and her mouth opened in a silent moan, but he could smell her arousal increase slightly. Taking care not to use his teeth, he took the bit of pink flesh between his lips and began to suckle her gently, the quiet wet sound of it turning him on beyond belief as his hand pushed through the other half of the curtain of hair concealing her to cup its twin, his calloused thumb caressing the nipple.

Vegeta saw the way her hands were flexing against the bedspread when he switched to the other breast and began to bestow it with the same amount of attention. Thinking he was upsetting her, he briefly stopped despite her arousal. But then he felt a nearly imperceptible arch into his mouth when he paused, a silent plea for more, so he continued, taking his time, licking and sucking at each of her nipples alternately until he finally managed to wrangle the softest whimper of pleasure from her mouth.

The queen's arousal was perfuming the air heavily by then, and her king briefly wondered how long he'd spent on that one stage of foreplay, how much time had passed in his efforts just to get her to emit that one quiet sound that let him know she was definitely enjoying his efforts. It was worth it, though, so he continued further south, dipping his tongue briefly into her belly button as he used his tail to slide her slip off of her and toss it to the floor unceremoniously.

"Don't forget to hold still," Vegeta chuckled as he pressed his mouth to the curls shielding her sex. "Squirming's fine, but try not to kick me in the head or anything," he added when he glanced up to find her red-faced, staring down at him in wonder.

Vegeta grinned as he gave her one slow lick, making sure to stroke his tongue from the base of her clit to the tip of it, but when she only gave a soft gasp, he looked back up at her. "My lady isn't pleased?"

"No—I—wha?" She asked incoherently, sounding nothing like a queen and more like a hormonal teenager.

"You're not enjoying this," he stated, wondering if she knew that he was actually teasing her.

"Wha—I… _**wha**_!? What gave you that idea?"

Vegeta mused that Serenity's face couldn't get any redder, and he stroked the inside of her thigh with the tip of his tail while she just stared at him in incredulous disbelief. "Because you're not voicing your pleasure. You would voice your pain if I was hurting you."

"Oh… I um… uh…" Serenity gave up and just shrugged in a total non-regal fashion, at a loss for how to answer. "I didn't know if it was ladylike to react as such since… um… I've never felt this sort of thing," she finally whispered in embarrassment.

Vegeta laughed at that, glad to know that his guess was correct, and gave her another slow lick, unsurprised to only hear her gasp. "My beast is taking it as a personal challenge," he informed her. "He wants to see what lengths he'll have to go to in order to hear you moaning my name."

Serenity only swallowed nervously, afraid to ask whether or not he was joking, wondering what he meant by 'moaning his name.' Was it… was it possible for her to actually experience _so much pleasure_ that she'd really be moaning like a wanton hussy? Her hips jerked involuntarily when he answered that question for her by giving her another slow lick, and Serenity's eyes were wide in shock as she felt his purr gently vibrating the wonderful little spot that he was fixated on.

Oh yeah… something told her that such a level of pleasure was definitely possible, and while she briefly wondered why her late king hadn't ever thought to do this for her, she couldn't focus on the question long enough to think up an answer. Hell, she couldn't think of anything with those soft whiskers caressing her sensitive folds, his tongue tracing and flicking lightly over and around that amazing spot between them, and her head simply fell back and she couldn't stop a sweet sigh from passing her lips.

Vegeta heard that sound and was encouraged by it and the feeling of her thighs parting slightly further on their own, giving him much better access to her sex. So he kept up those slow, gentle ministrations, delighting in the taste of her and how his beast was having a field day with what had been his greatest adversary only a day prior. Gods, how sweet it was going to feel to be buried inside of her, to feel his former enemy not only submitting to his pleasure but enjoying him as well, moaning his name in ecstasy as he took her as high as he could and sent her plummeting into climax after climax.

He'd noticed by then that the small hands clutching at the bedspread were her only tell sign, and he watched them from the corners of his eyes on occasion, learning quickly that she liked it best when he lingered at the base of her clit with the tip of his tongue before stroking with the flat of it in an agonizingly slow manner. Vegeta began to repeat that movement, meticulous in every execution of it, and when he heard a soft, high-pitched whimper finally leave her mouth, he groaned with pleasure right into her core and rewarded her with a slow, toe-curling suck.

That single pull of her clit into his mouth and the way his tongue rolled against it made Serenity bite down on her lower lip and arch, her eyes rolling back and her nails digging into the bedspread, another whimper escaping her when he did it again and she felt his fingers clutching at her hips. The only other man that had grabbed her like that had always left painful bruises on her skin, had always hurt her for his own sick enjoyment, but the way that Vegeta was clutching at her to keep her locked to his mouth spoke only of his own desire to give her pleasure rather than himself. So she didn't flinch at the way he was clutching her, and when he smoothed his thumbs firmly over her hipbones, she actually found herself relishing the possessive grip and shivering with pleasure in reaction.

The king felt her jerk a bit when he suddenly moved his mouth to her entrance, his tongue tracing just inside of it, lapping up the tasty results of his handiwork, and he gripped her hips a second time to hold her still, his thumbs caressing just below the bone. He didn't miss the way her hands flexed in response to that, either, and slid his hands up her sides experimentally, firmly drawing them back down her body as he gave another low groan and thrust his tongue into her.

Another whimper graced his ears, this one a bit louder than the last, and when he saw her hands flex and she gasped at the reward he gave her for voicing her pleasure—another slow, lazy suck to her clit—he suddenly wanted to feel those small, fluttering hands buried in his hair. Vegeta's hands snuck from her waist to her arms then, drawing slow circles from her elbows to her wrists, his beast being sneaky about getting what it wanted as it gradually drew her hands from the covers to his mane by way of gentle caressing while he made the same movements with his tongue against her swollen, wet nub.

He couldn't have been more pleased the first time he felt her grip his hair, her hips rolling up slightly as she began to pant heavily, having only let herself breath in short, shallow gasps through her nose before. She was close, he could tell by her scent, but he didn't want it to end just yet, he wanted to hear her moan for him, even if it was only once. But he didn't want to verbally request such a thing, knowing that she would do it only because she felt like he was demanding it from her; oh no, he didn't want to make her sing for him out of demand, he wanted to coax it from her mouth, to know that it was his skill and his patience that had drawn it out of her and nothing else.

It was when a soft whimper became a gasping whine and she bucked against him searchingly that he knew how to get it out of her, and he removed his tongue from her entrance and went back up to her clit, licking it in feather-light movements as he pressed two fingers into her, stretching her as they pushed deep. His beast grinned in reaction when her hands actually pulled at his hair and she made a strangled sound in reply, and he rewarded that almost-moan with one careful, measured suck, hooking his fingers inwards.

What came next was even better than a moan. "_Vegeta_," she whispered, her voice shaking. "_Pl—Please_…"

The king could only growl in triumph at the sound of her begging and began to suck at her steadily, his fingers hooking and thrusting gently, making her nails dig slightly into his scalp and her toes curl against his elbows. The sweetest moan he'd ever heard came out of her mouth then, high and beautiful, rising in pitch as he felt her inner muscles beginning to tighten. That wonderful note fell slightly before practically rising an octave when he felt her clamp around his fingers and he began to thrust them deep and hard, sucking steadily on her clit to lengthen the peak of her orgasm, his purr growing louder when she bucked her hips into his mouth in tiny, short jerks.

Her song of pleasure ended with a little whimper, and Vegeta looked up to find her flushed, panting, her eyes cracked open slightly, locked onto his face. "So," he drawled smugly, "how was your first Saiyan kiss?"

"Fuck," she sputtered, huffing for air, only briefly feeling ashamed for uttering such a crude word. Only briefly, though, since that seemed to be the only word that could adequately describe how blown her mind was by such an introduction to female sexual pleasure.

"Mmm… since I don't think I've ever heard you utter such an oath, I'm definitely taking that as a compliment. Would you like me to kiss you again, my queen? The effort was more than worth the result."

**WHEW! Like I said, 30 fucking pages of this shit and more to write, and that's JUST the first night! *falls over and dies* So review and I'll update again before Monday if I'm happpeeeee!**


	2. Chapter 2

**So… yup. Continuing right where we left off, this here is about 8000 words of 99% smut. ENJOY! And remember that reviews equal more! Poor Vegeta, he just wants to show his timid little traumatized queen some lovin'… Saiyan style. :D**

**Oh, btw-Shadow 13, I typically reply to reviews via PM, but yours was anon! Serenity and Bardock? Nuuuuu! Makoto and Bardock! OTP! OTP!**

Serenity could barely even focus on him through the warm, hazy, contented feeling creeping through her limbs, but she managed a tiny shake of her head at the offer. "Don't think I'd survive it," she admitted in a breathless whisper.

"Shit, woman, then I'm about to fucking _kill_ you," Vegeta rumbled pleasantly as he started kicking off his pants, nibbling at her inner thighs only to hear her breath hitch automatically at the feeling of his teeth. He corrected his mistake quickly though, knowing now for sure that she associated teeth during sex with pain, even though she hadn't uttered a word about what her first king had done to her in bed. He was smoothing over the flesh with his lips and his tongue when his fatigues finally fell to the floor, and he slid back up her body leisurely, worshipping the underside of her breasts with his mouth and hands, chuckling when she squirmed from the way his beard was tickling her over-sensitive, post-orgasmic flesh.

Serenity couldn't stop the soft moan that escaped her lips when she felt his bare cock sliding between her folds and up against her clit, her hands fluttering and clinging to his back, but she was past caring about propriety and could only let loose another quiet sound of pleasure when he began to thrust back and forth over it slowly, coating himself in her desire to ease his first thrust.

She didn't know that, though, had never encountered such a courtesy from any man—let alone from her greatest enemy—and the queen found herself whimpering and arching into him, the groans coming out of his mouth actually turning her on, pushing her closer to the edge she'd only just fallen from.

Apparently now that she knew how to get there, her body wasn't having a problem finding ecstasy a second time, and though Vegeta knew he was more than soaked from her and ready to take her without hurting her, he kept moving for her pleasure, beyond pleased by the sounds of delight she was making. "Come for me again, _k'sha_," he breathed into her hair, his purr rolling loudly when she responded with a helpless whimper of his name, the vibration sending her over the edge with a strangled moan that had him groaning and eagerly lifting her hips to take her.

Serenity drew a shuddering gasp when he pressed into her as soon as he'd rode out her soaring climax, and while she immediately flinched from the anticipation of feeling pain, she relaxed when he stopped, then gave him a slow, hesitant nod, resting her sweaty forehead to his chest as her hand slid gently down his spine to press lightly to his lower back in silent permission.

Even if it hurt, she'd definitely give him this in return for what he'd just given her; such pleasure had been a priceless gift, and she wasn't so far gone that the fact that she'd received it from her greatest enemy was beyond her. Dear gods, even if he never kissed her between her thighs ever again, she knew she would feel like she owed him his pleasure every night for the rest of his life in exchange for this one incredible sexual encounter.

But then he lifted her hips a little higher and thrust deeply, and in her surprise at the pleasure rolling through her, Serenity let loose a short, sharp moan, her nails digging in just above his tail and her head rolling back in ecstasy. "_Vegeta_!"

The hint of what sounded like panic in her voice stopped him, and the king rested on his forearms as he soothed her with gentle kisses and nuzzles to her throat and her shoulder. "Didn't mean to hurt you, my mate," he whispered contritely. "I was too impatient. Relax and I'll go down on you some more."

"D—Didn't hurt," she whimpered, moving her hips in what was nearly a demand, her hands clutching at him when he moved to withdraw from her body. "Please… please don't stop, I never knew it could feel so wonderful." Wishing he would kiss her mouth, Serenity turned her head to press her lips to his, and when he groaned she slipped her tongue in to play with his, letting out her own soft moan when he began to move inside of her, keeping his thrusts slow and shallow, setting every nerve ending inside of her on fire for more.

Serenity was drowning in pleasure then, no longer trying to keep her voice or her volume in check, arching into her once-sworn enemy with every slow roll of his narrow hips, her hands tangled in his hair as she kissed him deeply and he breathed in her moans of pleasure.

Vegeta finally broke the kiss in order to get his breath, his beast automatically dragging his mouth back down to her shoulder to nip at it, glad that she didn't flinch at the feeling of his teeth. "I want you to come for me again, woman, I want to know that I wind you up as tightly as you have me since I first saw you." He purred with delight when he immediately felt her tighten and she keened loudly, her legs wrapping around his waist and her body arching delightfully into his as he moved a little harder.

The shockwave of pleasure that ran through him as her walls spasmed and massaged his cock nearly pushed him right to the edge to join her, but the king held himself back and bent his mouth to her breast, sucking at her and sliding his hands low to grip her hips in the same manner as he had before, making her hands flutter and clutch at his shoulders.

Feeling a bit naughty, the king finally raised his head to look at her and his lips twitched up at the sight of her gazing back at him in pleasure-laced awe, and kept his thrusts smooth and deep when he bent his mouth to her ear. "How does it feel, Serenity?" He purred. When he saw her blush out of the corner of his eye and she didn't respond, he grinned against her throat and chuckled. "Does talking dirty embarrass you, beautiful? Would it make you blush to know that I dreamed of fucking you since I first saw you? Of making you come over and over? That I fantasized about hearing you screaming my name?"

"Vegeta," she whispered, "please don't."

Seeing that he'd upset her a little, Vegeta sighed but gave her a tiny smile before capturing her lips with his own, soothing her insecurities with a passionate kiss as he wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her tightly against him. "Come for me again," he breathed between slow, deep kisses, panting heavily as he closed in on his own orgasm.

Serenity could only tighten her hold on him as she felt his tail join in to slip between them and massage her clit, and both of them moaned softly when she tightened in response, the king breaking the kiss to focus heatedly on her shoulder with his teeth. "Do it," she whispered, "please Vegeta, do it."

Her softly spoken permission and the way her fingers tangled in his hair to hold his mouth to her shoulder had him purring and growling possessively as he took her harder and sunk his teeth into the creamy flesh, and when she yelled in response—actually yelled!—Vegeta lost all control, his tail tingling with pleasure just before he erupted inside of her, his groan of satisfaction echoing throughout the room as he saw white and was flooded head to toe with ecstasy. _"Serenity…"_

The woman in question could only hang on for dear life as she gradually floated back down, her mind a haze of pleasure, her hands sliding up and down his back and caressing every inch of skin she could access. Gods, that rush of pure pleasure when he'd bitten her shoulder… it was simply indescribable, and the way he'd taken her so carefully, so considerately… "Thank you, my king," she whispered, feeling shy even though he was still pulsing inside of her, gradually softening.

"Mmm… never have I heard such gratitude," he chuckled as he nibbled at her shoulder and felt her flex around him in response, her hips moving instinctively. "Do you want more, my mate? Or will you hold still while I clean your mark up?" Vegeta felt her stiffen beneath him and sighed. "Woman, you really need to learn that while I'm the most feared warrior king in the universe, that doesn't apply to the bedroom. Or to you," he added. "You're my mate now so you'll… see sides of me in private that no one else ever has, except for maybe Nappa and Raditz."

That calmed her, and Serenity cracked her eyes open in the dim lighting to find him smiling down at her, his expression… gentle. Almost tender, even. And what's more, she could actually feel his intention to relax her, to assure her that she wouldn't be harmed in any way, least of all by him. "I can feel you," she whispered in slight shock.

"Good, it means that the bite's forming a half-bond," he purred, bending his mouth back to her shoulder to clean up that sweet, silver-edged blood, his purr rolling high and happy as she squirmed and fought for air through the little waves of pleasure rolling through her. "It'll get stronger every time we mate," he finally informed her, "and when you bite me back, the bond will be fully formed."

"Bite you back?" She asked with wide, blue eyes. Serenity instantly expected the idea to revolt her, but something about it actually… turned her on. It had to be the forming half-bond that was doing it to her. "Do… do I need to…?"

"Not yet, _k'sha_. While I'd love for you to bite me right now, I'd rather you wait until you want to. It's not like either of us is going anywhere, after all, so you may return the mark when you're ready."

The thought that he was going soft floated from his mind and into hers, and Serenity blinked in astonishment as she followed the trail from that thought and found his earlier intention to demand that she bite him back, how he'd planned to establish the full mating bond right away so that he could go back to business as usual with his Saiyan Elite. That was actually _sweet_ of him, to relent and wait for her to get more comfortable around him before fully sealing the deal. "Thank you, Vegeta," she sighed gratefully, actually smiling shyly up at him before hesitantly kissing his shoulder.

Vegeta groaned at that and pulled her mouth to his instead before nipping playfully at her lower lip. "Don't kiss me there unless you intend on biting, woman. I have to admit that I don't take well to being teased… not like that, anyway. You didn't know," he rumbled quickly when she flinched and he felt her intention to apologize profusely. "Now…" He rolled to the side and nipped at her mark one more time, sighing at the taste of her, light and pure and addictive. "…hungry? I'd meant to offer you refreshment before we'd mated, but I'll admit that I was overly eager to bed you."

"It's alright," Serenity said slowly, rubbing at her head briefly at how hazy and relaxed she felt. It was such an abnormal, alien feeling that it almost felt like something was wrong with her. But when she heard his fleeting worry about her maybe having a headache, she chuckled. "No, I'm fine, just… a little overwhelmed. I've… I've never felt so… _good_," she admitted with a little blush.

Vegeta was the perfect picture of the smitten, attentive lover since he was also overtaken from the hormones of the bite, and he purred happily, tugging her over and up so that she was lying face down on his rippling chest. "Get used to it, woman. As much as I intend on biting that lovely little shoulder, you're going to feel high all the time."

"I'd complain, but I'm too relaxed to do so," she sighed, letting go of her nerves and inhibitions for the time being to relax and rest her head over his heart, reflecting that even this terrifying warrior had a beating heart in his chest, amazed that he had shown her that in more ways than one. _Aphrodite did tell me once that Usa's father was actually the exception to the rule, that the majority of men were kind. I'll never hear the end of it when she calls me tomorrow. _

"You should probably call your daughter as well, tonight," Vegeta rumbled, already half-dozing, lulled by the sensation of his new mate's breathing and the way she was relaxing into him and using him as a body pillow. _Gods, even Kalera never got me this relaxed, _he sighed happily. _I guess the old man was right about the effects of taking a second mate. _

"Your father?" Serenity murmured, idly exploring the dips and ripples in his arms, tracing the scars with her fingertips without thought.

"Mmm… was mated three times, that one. Said that it gets better every time… but that the loss hits harder, too. He was a suicide by war when his third mate fell in battle, he couldn't take the grief of losing her, so he threw himself at the opposing army, and completely outnumbered, he produced a blast so powerful that it eradicated them all and himself."

"Wow… that's actually romantic," she replied softly. "Like in the stories my mother told me as a child," she sighed.

"Was it true that your mother fashioned you out of clay and begged Zeus to breathe life into you?" Vegeta rumbled curiously. "Or was it the shepherd story?" He was surprised and warmed to hear her giggle into his chest, and when he looked down he found her actually _grinning_.

"I'll tell you something that very few people know, even in my system… my mother liked women," she whispered conspiratorially. "It wasn't a shepherd, it was a huntress tracking deer late at night… Zeus's very own daughter," Serenity purred, knowing her gossip was making Vegeta's jaw slowly drop in shock. "But mother wanted a daughter so very badly… so in exchange for her and Artemis keeping things hush-hush, Zeus breathed life into a clay baby girl. Me," she finished with a smile. "So both stories are true, actually."

"Heh… I'll be damned," Vegeta snickered. "So, do you share your mother's preferences? Should I find a willing little voluptuous vixen to join us?"

"I don't know," Serenity mused with a straight face, "I've always preferred my women taller and demure, more like Queen Amphitrite." When he just stared at her in shock, she smiled like a cat that had gotten the cream and savored the look on his face. "Did you know that gullible is not in the dictionary, my king?"

Understanding dawned on his face just as slowly and he gaped at her in surprise. "Did… did you just… troll me?" When she nodded and blushed, he let out a low rolling laugh and lightly smacked her bottom in his mirth. "Woman, that was good! Gods, I'll remember that poker face if I ever play you in cards!" Then more seriously, he looked back down at her and licked his lips. "So… you _do_ like men, then?"

"I married one didn't I? Trust me, my mother would have been the very first person to support my marriage to another woman should I have been born a lesbian." Her face grew dark then, and she sighed heavily. "The troubles started just after she died and abdicated to me… I used to take comfort in the knowledge that she would have smote Alaric upon the walls of the Mare Serenitatis if she'd still been alive when… when the first incident happened."

"When he hit you," Vegeta grunted. "Don't dress it up, woman."

"When he _raped_ me, then," she corrected shakily. "He didn't just hit me that first time, Vegeta… and… I'd rather not talk about this anymore." Serenity felt her king hold her tightly then, wrapping his large arms around her, his warm scent and embrace making her feel secure with a man for the first time in her entire life. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Gods… I hate to sound like a sappy, green warrior just out of his training squad, but if you ever want to talk… I'll listen. Just don't be surprised when I rage about wanting to go back in time to make the little prick consume his own pathetic little cock."

"If it wasn't taboo, I'd call Uncle Chronos just to make it happen," she replied seriously. "Nothing would have given me greater pleasure than to watch him suffer as I did."

Vegeta could only rumble an agreement and fished around to find his scouter on the nightstand as he pressed his lips to her forehead. "You're right, woman. Let's not talk about this anymore. Tonight's for mating, not anger or awful memories."

Feeling a wave of comfort, understanding and safety rolling through her mind from him, along with the promise that he _would_ listen later on if she wanted to talk about Alaric, Serenity nodded, more than content to just enjoy whatever they had left of the night. Hell, what time was it on Vegeta-sai anyway? Her body instinctively knew that it was only about noon on the Moon, but Vegeta-sai had longer days and—

"It's early evening here, Serenity, about what would be eleven at night for your people. Our evening begins much later because we have two suns," he reminded her. "Just be grateful that we'll have night at all for the next eight or nine years; it gets a little insane here when the suns are on opposite sides of the planet and we're always bathed in sunlight. Gets hot as hell and impossible to grow anything, too," he added with a snort. Vegeta donned his scouter then and ordered Nappa to bring up a meal for himself and the queen before tossing it back onto the little end table.

"Vegeta," Serenity said thoughtfully, "was that part of the reason this war started? Were your people starving five years ago?" She heard the answer in his thoughts and saw it in his body language when he stiffened beneath her and growled, and Serenity pushed down a wave of unease at the sound. "You could have just treated with me for aid, you know. Warrior culture or not, there's nothing wrong with accepting help, Vegeta. You don't have to destroy everything or take it." She felt him respond in her head with his previous words and she instantly sighed and nodded. "My apologies, you're right. Another time… tonight is not the appropriate time to bicker over our differences."

"No, it's not," he grunted as he rolled back on top of her, then crushed his mouth to hers. When he finally pulled away after letting his tongue duel slowly with hers, kissing her until she reeked of arousal, Vegeta grinned. "So, you didn't tell me, Serenity… how did it feel?" He breathed in her ear, sensing her ladylike blush through the bond. "How did it feel to have a Saiyan king inside of you, focused solely on your pleasure and aching just to hear you voicing it?"

Instead of feeling slight embarrassment and arousal coming from her, Vegeta felt a wave of distress and raised up to look at her in the dim light. "Damn it. So much for not talking about horrible things," he sputtered. "Sorry, woman, I'd meant to tease you a bit, not dredge up bad memories… he used to talk in bed, didn't he? Talk dirty?" Her tiny nod made him sputter, but Vegeta sent her a wave of reassurance through the bond and kissed her gently before flopping onto his back once more and bringing her with him. "And I so did like to talk dirty in bed, too," he grumbled. "But I'll try not to for your sake until you're a bit more comfortable with our relationship."

"I'm sorry, my king," she whispered. "I understand that your intentions are much different than his were when you talk like that. It's just…"

"Ugh, woman, it's alright," he replied roughly, though his hands didn't echo the gruff tone of his voice as they smoothed down her back. "You were traumatized right after you'd come of mating age; I'm stunned that you didn't just let your daughter take the bone instead. I know you expected a total repeat of the first marriage, I'm not stupid."

"No, you're not," she answered, her voice a little stronger as she leaned up to look at him. "But maybe _**I**_ was stupid to expect that of all men. Aphrodite has reminded me often that my former king was an exception to the rule."

"Yes, he was," Vegeta grunted just as a knock sounded at the door. "Hang on," he called as he sat up and yanked back all the covers they'd been lying on.

Serenity thanked him with a shy smile when he quickly arranged them around her to cover her before slipping in beside her, but blushed and ducked a bit further under them when an Elite warrior—not a female maid—opened the door and walked in.

"Nappa is my most trusted general," Vegeta drawled. "Don't be embarrassed, woman. He keeps his mouth shut, unlike some others… though I'll see about getting you a maid, if you'd prefer."

"Heh, sure you don't want me to dress up as one instead, Vegeta?" Nappa snorted as he sat a tray down at the foot of the bed. "I saw some interesting tiny little frilly outfits on Venus during the siege. I think they were for maids."

Serenity couldn't stop herself from the mental image and giggled as she slid down further under the bedspread until her shoulders were covered. "Those weren't for maids, that was lingerie!" She giggled.

"What?" Both men asked at once.

"It… it was lingerie!" She cackled, peeking up at Nappa, who was obviously looking away from her face deliberately. "You know… like, sexy outfits that a woman might wear for her husband. To…" She blushed and looked over to find Vegeta listening closely. "You know… arouse him."

Both men snorted at that and rolled their eyes simultaneously. "Show up naked," they both replied in unison.

"That'll get a man's blood up fast enough," Nappa added with a smirk. "No point in wrapping a gift in tissue paper that's only going to wind up shredded, anyway."

"Hear, hear," the king agreed before handing his queen a glass of wine from the tray, the covers pushed back enough to expose him. But he obviously didn't care if Nappa saw him naked; if they were as close as they seemed, they'd likely seen each other in all sorts of states of undress in the past.

"That all you need, Majesty?" Nappa asked.

"No, stay for a moment and eat, Nappa, I need to discuss some business with you. If my queen doesn't mind, of course," Vegeta added as an afterthought.

"Um… if Nappa wouldn't mind turning his back for just a moment?" Serenity asked meekly. He didn't even reply, he simply shrugged and turned around, and the silver-haired goddess shucked off the covers, reached into her subspace, and drew out a pair of underwear, threw them on, then covered herself in a thick terrycloth robe. "Ok, much better," she giggled nervously. "Sorry, but my people simply aren't so comfortable with showing our bodies."

"Which is why I was looking away, Majesty," Nappa replied with a wink when he turned.

Serenity noticed that he still wasn't looking at her when he spoke, though, and lifted a brow when she tried to catch his eye and he immediately glanced at the floor. "You still are."

"You haven't bitten his Majesty in return, so no male Saiyan would dare look you in the eye out of utmost respect for the king. None of us would risk feeling the pull for you," he elaborated, "which is still possible when there's only a half-bond present."

"Oh," she said softly. "I didn't know that. My apologies, Nappa, I should have assumed that there was a valid reason for not looking at me." Serenity quickly poured him a glass of wine and extended it. "Here, eat and drink with us, Nappa."

The general only grinned, shook his head and chuckled while waving away the glass. "You also do not serve any warrior but your mate, Majesty."

Blushing brightly, Serenity nervously eyed Vegeta, but relaxed upon seeing him grinning as well, damned near close to laughing at her faux pas. "I only meant to be polite," she assured him.

"That's alright, woman," the king drawled. "Now we're even for the kissing misunderstanding." He plucked the cup from her hand when she offered it to him instead, wrapping his tail about her waist in a clear gesture of possessiveness, drank, then offered her a plate.

Serenity took it graciously and offered him one in turn, earning her an approving nod from the king and a wave of thanks through the bond. She was still trying to figure out how to communicate through it though, so she could only give him a little smile in return.

"Well, down to business. Nappa, I need a maid for the queen, one that can be trusted to keep her mouth shut. Unless… Serenity, would you prefer to send for one? Could your daughter teleport her here?" When she nodded, the king ate and gestured for Nappa to do so as well. "Alright, then, that was easy. Second, I want a guard posted for my mate that can be trusted. And _not_ Raditz, damn it. While I don't suspect that he'd be stupid enough to try anything, that boy's mouth will have the queen so embarrassed that she'll pass out," he snorted.

"Kakarot then," Nappa offered through a mouthful of food. "The boy's sociable and likeable, like Raditz, but he's not a filthy-mouthed horndog."

"Acceptable, _k'sha_?" Vegeta asked Serenity with a little sideways glance.

"I trust your judgment on the matter and Nappa's as well," she answered honestly. "I don't know the men in the Elite, but you do. Though… is Raditz really that horrible? I assure you that I'm not some blushing maid that's going to faint at a crude remark."

"Oh, he's worse than you think," the king replied. "We'll stick with Kakarot, I'm sure that Raditz would wind up getting himself beheaded before the end of the first day. Alright… what's next… damn it woman," he chortled, "you've got my head all fucked up; that scent of yours alone is going to ruin me for the rest of the week. Anyways… ah, yes. The queen would like to visit her daughter, and while she's only been here a day, I thought you might want to get ahead of the game and make sure an appropriate guard detail is arranged for her when the time comes."

"Bardock, Kakarot, Raditz, Turles," Nappa said automatically. "Kakarot and Raditz for any social engagements, and Bardock and Turles in case things get… surly." He took another bite then and chewed thoughtfully. "We really should elevate the younger boys' rank, they earned it with the way they handled things on Mercury when Vegeta lost his shit, Majesty. Things damned near got violent with Queen Athena and Princess Ami when he tried to take off with Princess Bulma."

"See that it's done, then. I heard that Turles restrained the prince while Kakarot managed to talk some sense into him. Those four make a good team in battle. Try and keep them together; they're more effective that way."

"Consider it done, Majesty. Oh, shit. While I'm at it, a lot of the people are clamoring to meet your mate; word spread fast that Serenity had arrived, and I think it'd be a good idea to take her out into the market or something. It'd boost morale among the third-class warriors," Nappa advised.

Serenity blinked at that and shrugged when the king looked askance at her instead of just agreeing, and she managed a little shrug. "I'm not opposed to meeting my people at all… I mean, I walked among my people on the moon every day. Shouldn't I do so here?" A twitch of his lips told her she'd answered correctly, and when Vegeta and Nappa began discussing trade options with other planets as well as crop rotation on the fertile side of the planet, Serenity began to sink into her own thoughts, wondering how her daughter was faring even though she'd only been gone for one day.

Her name finally brought her back to reality some minutes later and she blinked at the sound of "Serenity's thinking about her homeworld."

"Huh?"

"Nappa was inquiring about how your people managed to produce food on planets outside of what's considered a livable zone. I believe that Earth and its moon—maybe Mars—are the only places that aren't too far or too close to your sun," Vegeta informed her.

"Oh. Terraforming, of course. Though most of it's done through the planet's queen's powers on the planets that are further out. But Mars, Venus, Mercury and parts of Jupiter and its moons are terraformed." When they just looked at her questioningly, waiting for her to continue, Serenity shrugged cluelessly. "I'm no scientist, sorry. You'd have to ask my Aunt Athena or her daughter, Ami. I'm sure Ami knows all about it, in fact. That girl loves anything to do with the sciences."

"See if you can't contact her, Nappa," Vegeta ordered, "and find out what you can… maybe pay her a visit and check out some of the machines or whatever they use to do it. See how much time it'd take to terraform Vegeta-sai two, three and four."

"Oh," Serenity said in understanding. "You're solving the crop problem." She beamed at that but didn't bring up their earlier conversation, not wanting to embarrass him in front of Nappa, who was clearly her king's closest friend. "Nappa, if you'd like…" She pulled out her communicator and jotted down Ami's frequency on his hand with a pen from her subspace. "There, that should make it easier. It's only early afternoon on the moon and I know she's staying there for a few more days, so go ahead and call her now while she's likely eating something and not holed up in the lab."

"_D'in m'yo, ve'sh_."

"Huh?"

Vegeta and Nappa just stared at her for a long moment before the king shook his head wearily. "We're definitely going to have to work on your Saiyan, _k'sha_. Do you even know what I've been saying at all when I slip up and back into my native tongue?"

Serenity turned bright red and shrugged a little. "Um… I've kind of been faking understanding you," she admitted in pure mortification. "I'm so sorry, my king, I honest to gods didn't know how to admit that I didn't understand… though I've guessed that _ve'sh m'yo_ is 'my queen?'" She asked hopefully.

"Two words down," Nappa snorted, "only a few thousand to go, right?" Glancing up just enough to see just how embarrassed the queen was and the tears spilling over onto her cheeks, the general sighed and gave her an awkward little pat on the back. "_D'in m'yo_ is 'thank you,' Majesty. And I called you 'queen,' but not 'my queen,' because you're female and mated and there are implications of belonging to someone when you use _m'yo _between the genders. A male warrior might use it casually with someone he knows well that he knows won't take offense to it or feel uncomfortable, but just about any warrior wouldn't risk using it with the queen. Not if he wanted to keep his head, anyway," he chuckled.

"Don't cry, _k'sha_," Vegeta sighed, handing her a napkin to dab at her eyes. "If it makes you feel any better, you'll be speaking it fluently in a few weeks. It's much easier to learn than Solarian. We don't have any past or future contexts, really, and we only have like, two prepositions. You're going to learn verbs, nouns and adjectives, and that's about it. And since we're half-bonded, you'll understand everyone fine if I'm within earshot once you're used to using the bond."

"Besides, Majesty, we Saiyans only ever talk about the three big ones anyway," Nappa snickered. "Fighting, food and fucking. If you can talk about those three things, you're pretty much good in any circle."

Serenity sputtered at that but couldn't help letting out a giggle as she thought of her plethora of relatives. "Well, perhaps I should give Ares, my daughter and Aphrodite a call. I'm sure the three of them could easily field their specialties."

"Speaking of calls," Nappa replied with a grin as he held up the hand she'd wrote on. "I think I'll make that call now. Thank you, _ve'sh_."

"You're quite welcome," Serenity answered amicably. Once Nappa was out of the room she felt a pair of hands parting her newly donned robe and she blushed. "M—My k—king?"

"My queen?" Vegeta countered as he pushed the fabric from her body and licked his lips at the sight of her. But he didn't touch her, he only looked, and when she shyly darted her eyes to the side he relented and leaned away, going back to his meal. "If you don't desire me, Serenity, you only have to say so," he rumbled.

"It… it's not that," she managed. "And I will do whatever my king wishes," she added with a darkening blush as she dared to look him over, admiring the way the muscles in his chest and his arms rippled whenever he moved. _Gods, he is easily the loveliest specimen of a man I've ever laid eyes on, _she thought. _If it weren't so unladylike, I'd stare until I went blind._

"What I wish is for you to voice your desire if you want me, Serenity," he stated bluntly. "And if you don't, then state that instead without any fear of reprimand from me."

"Oh." Nervously she met his gaze, and what she found there wasn't annoyance or anger, just desire and frustration, and it gave her the courage to admit that she definitely did want that beautifully sculpted body pressing against her once more. "I want you, my king," she whispered so softly that he barely even heard her.

With a dazzling smile she didn't expect to see, Serenity didn't stop him from grasping her hand and drawing her into his lap, her cheeks burning hotly at the way he positioned her legs so that she was straddling him. She expected him to take her right away, but when he didn't, she looked down to find him only at half-mast. "My king?"

"My queen," Vegeta drawled back in amusement.

"I… I'm not sure if you want me to do anything," she admitted in embarrassment, her voice tainted with a hint of fear at the idea of being asked to touch him or use her mouth on him to get him hard again.

"Gods, it's going to take me years to fix all the damage that little asshole did, isn't it?" The king sighed. "Serenity, I don't expect you to do a thing to me. Unless you want to," he amended gently. When she only stared at him in genuine surprise, he wrapped his arms and tail around her and pulled her close, his mouth grazing over her mark. "We're going to make a deal. Hush," he added when she tried to draw back to look at him. "Let me speak, Serenity. From now on, don't expect me to expect anything out of you except for _your_ pleasure. I will do all the work; I will arouse you and make you come before I take my own pleasure, every single time you let me have you. Deal?"

Drawing in his delicious, unique scent, Serenity felt her heart ache at the tender understanding in his voice and tears began to sting her eyes in reaction to such a generous, selfless offer. "You don't want me to—"

"I want you to want it, Serenity," Vegeta growled softly, angry with her first husband for the terror he could feel through the bond whenever she thought about pleasuring him first. "When you want to, then do it. And not before then." His expression and voice softened when she trembled at his tone of voice and he finally drew back to look her in the eye. "I told you already, I won't see fear in my queen's eyes whenever she looks at me."

"Vegeta?"

The frustration in her eyes and the feeling of her desperation not to anger him made him sigh wearily. "Yes?"

"You keep calling me your queen. But… we both know that I'm only a concubine. A consort at best. Please stop calling me that," she whispered nervously.

"I keep no concubines and Saiyan kings do not take consorts, Serenity," Vegeta said firmly. "A mating bond makes us equals. Biting you was as good as crowning you queen of Vegeta-sai. Saiyans are all or nothing, remember that in the future." He drew her hand up to his mouth then, and kissing the knuckles, he kept his eyes locked with hers and pushed his commitment to her as a mate through the bond. She wasn't Saiyan, so he would be patient with her and hopefully she would understand in time that a mating bond was a very serious deal. "My queen."

"I'm really not some sort of breeding stock for you to simply get children on?" She asked, her voice hushed in surprise and hope as if speaking any louder would destroy any chance of such a good thing being true.

Vegeta couldn't help but give her a teasing grin as he brushed a tear from her cheek. "Would a crown make you feel better?" Her blush made him laugh, and when she gave a little shrug he reached behind her to scoop up his scouter. "Saiyan royals don't wear crowns, _k'sha_, but I'm more than willing to bend a little to honor your people's traditions."

Shocked to the core, Serenity quickly shook her head and stopped him from putting on the scouter. "No, Vegeta, I don't actually require a crown or anything of the sort, especially if it breaks with Saiyan tradition. I wouldn't want your people to think that you're catering to a foreign queen; it would only make them dislike me. I hate to admit it, but if the roles were reversed, I would have named you king consort and I would have crowned you in a ceremony once we were married… and I would have you adhering to Lunarian tradition to appease my people."

"You would do the same here?" He asked in disbelief.

"Yes… I would. If I am truly your legal wife and queen, then I would be so in truth. A Saiyan queen, not a foreign consort or a pawn in a peace agreement. All or nothing."

"You are either the bravest woman I've ever met… or the dumbest," Vegeta rumbled in respect. "You have my deepest admiration, Serenity… because I think I would have utterly chafed and resisted everything about being a Lunarian king." He put on his scouter then and dialed Nappa, and when his general picked up he smirked at him. "Nappa, send out a message to everyone's scouter that there is to be an official pair-bonding ceremony tomorrow at—" He looked around his scouter at Serenity then and raised his eyebrows. _What time do you usually roll out of bed, woman?_

Unused to the bond, Serenity replied aloud. "Oh… um… it depends on what time I go to sleep," she managed, turning bright red at the immediate thoughts flooding his mind about just what they could do to keep them awake all night.

"Two in the afternoon, Nappa," Vegeta snickered, practically giggling at the way Serenity's eyebrows hit her hairline and her blush spread down her chest, informing her through the bond that she wouldn't see sleep until the asscrack of dawn. "See that the Elite are present and any foreign dignitaries that are visiting are allowed to attend." He hung up then and tossed his scouter back onto the nightstand before bending his mouth to Serenity's mark and biting down on it hard enough to reopen it, clutching at her hips when she bowed backwards and moaned softly. "Just _mentioning _a pair-bonding ceremony's got my blood up," he admitted wryly once he'd pulled his teeth out of her shoulder.

Sure enough, a glance down confirmed that he was hard as steel and ready for her, and Serenity tried to focus on him through her own bite-induced arousal. "Why's that?" She slurred.

"You said all or nothing," he breathed against her lips. "You did mean it, right?"

All or nothing… of course she meant it, why did he—Serenity caught a picture in his head then, an image of her sinking her teeth into his shoulder, and despite her hesitancy to mark him in return, she nodded. A true marriage. All or nothing. Yes, that was what she would have wanted if the roles were reversed, and Vegeta had already stated that she was truly his queen. That was far more than she would have ever hoped for. "Yes. I'll mark you, Vegeta."

Vegeta shivered when she immediately leaned forward to do so, but he stopped her before she could even kiss his shoulder. "No. Tomorrow, Sere." He began to purr loudly then and slipped his hand between them, seeking out her clit and massaging it in slow, lazy circles, savoring the way she arched into it and gasped. "Just don't be surprised when I drag you right back to the palace and fuck you for the remainder of the day and all that night."

"Only one day and night?" She breathed, unable to stop the thought from leaving her mouth as she wondered if Saiyans took honeymoons, her body gyrating slightly into his slow, skilled ministrations, her eyes rolling back slightly when he found a spot on her throat that had her vision going fuzzy the moment he began to focus his attention on it.

"You'll be lucky if I let you out of bed for a month, woman," he growled as he tried to leash his beast for her benefit, her sweet little whimpers turning him on to no end. "Now come for me so I can get inside of you, _k'sha m'yo_."

Too overwhelmed by the waves of pleasure coursing through her to feel self-concious about the way she was straddling him and how he was suddenly devouring her breasts, Serenity utterly surrendered to him, arching into the mouth suckling her hungrily, moaning his name softly and burying her hands in his hair when she spiraled up into a mind-shattering climax.

And before she could even come down from that high, he was lifting her onto his erection, thrusting into her with his beast barely in check, his tail pulling her flush against him and his hands deliciously gripping her hips as he began to devour her mouth just to make her moan and squirm.

Already over-sensitive from the orgasm she'd had less than a minute beforehand, Serenity could only clutch at his broad back as he rocked his hips steadily, rubbing a spot deep inside of her that was so responsive that she was already coming for him again, crying out against his lips as her walls clamped down around him like a hot, silky vice.

_Come for me again, my mate, _he groaned through the bond, smoothly rising up onto his knees only to tip her onto her back, lifting her hips for the angle he wanted as he shifted his movements to shallow thrusts, quickening the pace as he continued to ravage her mouth. _Feels so good, doesn't it? _He inquired as his purr began to fill the room. _It feels fucking amazing for me, you know… you're so wet for me, Serenity, so warm and—_Vegeta stopped the dirty talk when he felt her stiffen slightly beneath him, and with a heavy sigh he broke the kiss. "_Mah'ni, ve'sh m'yo_," he breathed before kissing her once more, slowing his motions once more to slow, deep strokes.

She understood him through the bond, and to show she wasn't upset with him, Serenity began to move her hips in time with his, a soft hand sliding from his hair and down to his tail to pet it gently, somehow knowing that it was a good spot for him. The queen wasn't disappointed either, he immediately emitted a low growl of pleasure and began to move harder, and while she was apprehensive at first that he would hurt her, it only felt _wonderful_. She was coming again before she knew it, and to her undying surprise, the king let out a loud groan just as she found her release, spilling into her and slumping on top of her in a sweaty heap. "Vegeta?" She whispered between kisses. "You… alright?"

"_Nava m'yo_," he could only respond, his voice low and throaty. "_En… v'nu en_…"

It was only when she felt something squirming in her hand did she realize that she was still stroking his tail, her hand closed around the furry appendage, the grip snug but not tight. "Oh! Gods, my king, I'm so sorry!" Serenity exclaimed as she released him, only to hear him laughing in reply as he gave her a little playful thrust.

"_F'ri, atti_… felt good. Really good," Vegeta elaborated as he continued to chortle at how quickly she'd just gotten him off. "Ready for round three?"

"_You_ are!?" Serenity asked incredulously, noting that his cock was in fact, still hard inside of her. "Seriously?"

"I told you," Vegeta replied softly. "I've fantasized about you shamelessly since the first time I laid eyes on you. The fact that you were my sworn enemy didn't change the reality that you're the most beautiful woman I've ever laid eyes on."

Unable to stop herself from blushing brightly, Serenity managed only a meek little thank you before she was being kissed once more, briefly reflecting on how quickly the Saiyan king had picked up on just how to kiss her to arouse her. "Wait," she managed softly when she felt her stomach growl. "Hungry."

"Mmm… yes, you didn't get much to eat before I attacked you again," Vegeta chuckled as he withdrew from her body, noting how red her cheeks were as she glanced at his impressive size and then to the tray of goodies that Nappa had brought them for an impromptu wedding feast. "Here, _atti_. Eat your fill," he encouraged her. "Women here don't eat like birds to be polite, so make sure you eat however much you want, whenever you want. Understand?"

"Saiyan males don't find stuffing one's face to be unattractive?" Serenity asked curiously as she took her unfinished plate, freshly heaped with even more food.

"Not at all. A healthy, strong woman bears healthy, strong warriors."

Serenity couldn't help but stiffen at the mention of babies and gave him the deer in the headlights look, immediately reaching into her subspace pocket to draw out a vial that Aphrodite had given her for her to take. In the emotional storm of that entire evening, she'd forgotten to drink it. "Vegeta… I… I forgot my contraception," she stammered out quickly.

"Relax, _atti_, I didn't forget mine," Vegeta rumbled, his tone infinitely gentle as a result of her panic. He could feel it through the bond, and he didn't even need his beast to urge him to comfort her in order for him to wrap his arms and tail around her from behind, his fingers combing through her copious hair. "I assumed before we even agreed upon waiting for brats that you might want to hold off on making any."

"Thank you, my king," Serenity sighed gratefully as she leaned into him and began to eat. "I appreciate your foresight."

"Not a problem, my queen. I will cease taking it tomorrow night and leave you to decide when you wish to conceive. Is that acceptable to you?"

Half wishing that she could purr like him so she could somehow let him know how much she was enjoying the way he was gently grooming her, Serenity just nodded and continued to eat her meal as quickly as was proper. Towards the end, once all of her snags and tangles had been carefully worked out by his hands, she felt him sliding them around to cup her, his thumbs briefly caressing the nipples while he began to kiss and lick at her shoulder. "Vegeta…?"

"Mmm? Still hungry?" He rumbled, moving from her mark to her throat so she could at least reply coherently. "Want me to stop?"

"No, it's just… you really want more?"

The breathless amazement in her voice and through the bond made him chuckle, and he nodded as he ground his rigid cock into her lower back to show her just how much more he wanted from her. "I have a feeling I'll always want more of you, _atti_," he breathed in her ear. "Do you want me? I can smell your arousal, but if you're tired I'll go take care of myself in the shower."

The very idea of him stroking himself to release in a steamy shower stall shot her level of arousal through the roof, and Serenity turned her head to stare at him owlishly, unable to believe her own lecherous thoughts. But she had to admit that the notion of seeing him doing something so private was delicious.

"You'd like to watch?" Vegeta asked, chuckling as he gave her a few teasing nips to her earlobe. "Mmm… how wanton you are for me after only a few hours, my mate. Shall we go bathe and I'll put on a show for you? I have to admit, the picture in your delightful little head is all wrong, and I would like nothing more than to show you how a Saiyan actually gets himself off."

**Told you so! This is gonna be an all-nighter, ladies, so review! And then… if you guessed right… Nappa calls Ami. :D And since that's my OTP, yall can take a wild stab at what happens when they meet… er. Meat. Meet? Both. :D And lots of the former after the latter. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Yay, I'm so glad yall liked the last two chapters! I'll be updating Dark Chocolate tonight too if my smut muse holds out for the day! And HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANA FROST! I threw in the very ending of this chapter for you, btw… :D I was gonna hold off until the next one!**

"Oh?" Serenity couldn't help but feel curious at that statement, and before she knew it she was being scooped up and taken into the bathroom, plate and all, fork still in her mouth. The moment it was plucked from her lips and she chewed and swallowed, she was being kissed again, the remnants of her generous meal being set aside as the king toted his slightly bewildered queen under the hot spray and sat her down on a seat built into the large shower stall. "Vegeta?"

"Just sit and watch, _k'sha_," he purred as he sat down beside her and arranged them so that they were both sitting on the wide perch with their legs intertwined, facing each other.

While she was turned on by what was about to happen, Serenity knew that she should be protesting such lewd conduct; sure, it was with her husband and her king, but she'd never even bathed with a man before! That realization had her about to protest, but before the words could leave her lips, Vegeta gave her a grin so boyishly mischevious that she felt her heart pounding in reaction, that simple expression bringing back the ache between her thighs. _Good gods, he is so attractive when he smiles like that!_

_Glad you think so, _Vegeta replied through the bond as he wrapped the end of his tail around his arousal, biting down on his lower lip to keep from roaring with mirth at her shocked stare, his eyes crinkling up and twinkling in a silent laugh. "Are you sufficiently scandalized, my queen?" He finally managed when she only continued to gape at him.

"You use your _tail_!?" She squeaked in surprise.

"Mmhmm… in the water it feels like warm, wet velvet," he informed her as he began to flex his tail, his sexy little smile never faltering as she gradually got over her shock and began to watch him intently, her arousal perfuming the enclosed space very quickly. "Would you like to join me, my queen?" Her confused expression made him smile, and he used one of his legs to edge her closer to him, her heat only mere inches away from his aching cock and his flexing tail. "I've had a fantasy for a few years about walking in on you touching yourself, you know, and I would be ecstatic if you'd fulfill it for me."

"And in what fantasy world could you possibly walk right into the queen's chambers to see such a lewd act?" Serenity asked curiously.

Uttering a little groan when his tail began to tingle in reaction to the picture he'd always thought of when stroking himself, Vegeta couldn't believe that he was ready to come again so soon and he had to stop before he covered his new queen in his seed. "One in which I snuck onto your planet in the dead of night, bypassed all of your guards and flew into your room," he chuckled. "And I'm about to lose it already," he admitted.

"Oh… really?" Serenity expected him to continue, but when he only just licked his lips and waited, she understood what he was delaying his pleasure for. "Ooooh. I don't know, Vegeta… I've honestly never done that before. You really were my first experience with physical pleasure. And if we are being totally honest with each other, I don't think I'm ready to do something like that… not yet."

"Oh, I think I'm willing to compromise, woman. Get over here," he ordered with a little laugh, tugging her up into his lap, turning her so that her back was to his chest. "If you're squeamish about touching yourself, Serenity, I will be _more_ than happy to assist you."

So he was going to fondle and play with her like this while he used his tail on himself? Serenity was ok with that, but she was oddly disappointed that she couldn't watch him finish.

"Would you like to _feel_ me finish?" Vegeta purred in her ear from behind before licking a stream of water from her throat.

About to suggest going back to the bed, Serenity jumped and earnestly struggled when she felt his tail unwrap from his erection and press against a firm cheek, her entire body trembling with panic as her eyes filled up with terrified tears. "_No, please don't_, Vegeta! _**Please no**_!" The queen was immediately released and against the far wall of the shower, the water beating down on her silver hair as she curled up defensively and stared at him in fear. "Please don't," she whispered shakily.

"I won't," he said hurriedly, his face full of nothing but concern as he watched her huddle herself further into the corner and shiver. His beast urged him to go to her, but something told him that she was having some sort of a horrible flashback to her first marriage and that she would only freak out if he came any closer, so he stayed put despite the fact that he only wanted to comfort her. "Serenity, what did I do?"

It took a full minute before she could answer without sobbing hysterically, but she finally wiped at her tears and regarded him with wide, blue eyes. "Not there," she managed. "Please don't make love to me there, Vegeta. It'll only hurt. I don't care if I'm breaking some Saiyan taboo and I'm sorry if my refusal displeases you, but I'm begging you to _never, ever_ make me do that," she finished, her voice choking up on tears caused by horrible memories from her first marriage.

"Wait… you… you thought that… _**nooo**_," Vegeta groaned, facepalming and dragging his hand down from his forehead to his beard in his embarrassment for her. Gods, if he could only go back in time and give that fucking bastard a taste of his own medicine! "Serenity, that's _not_ what I was going to do, I promise! I wouldn't have even thought of doing that with a woman—with a man, yes, if I was like a lot of the warriors on this planet—unless she requested it specifically. Gods damn it all," he sighed as he slipped down off the wide seat and directly into the spray, only to switch it over to the faucet to let the tub fill. "Come here, Serenity," he urged her gently, coaxing her with some petting to get her to sit beside him, his beast purring softly in comfort when he still felt pure, rolling fear from her through the bond.

Unaccustomed to comforting a woman since he'd been without one in over ten years, Vegeta simply held her and kept purring, just as he'd done for Kalera during countless miscarriages before they'd finally conceived his heir. "Serenity, I'm sorry for upsetting you," he finally whispered into her hair. "I'd only meant to give you pleasure, not a nasty flashback. And I'm not him, remember that. I'll never hurt you."

The queen managed only a little nod, and despite her lingering fear she let him pull her into his lap. He wasn't trying to mate her again, though, he was only holding her and kissing and petting her soothingly, his large, calloused hands causing her to shiver with pleasure.

"Sorry, I'm not actually trying to arouse you," Vegeta muttered sheepishly when she arched a bit into the hands sliding over her water-slicked breasts. "It's been a very long time since I've simply held a woman, so consider me almost as new to this sort of thing as you are."

That piqued her curiosity enough to draw her out of the flashback, and Serenity stared up at him in surprise. "Wait, it's been what…? Ten years or so? You can't seriously tell me that you haven't taken a woman to bed in a decade." Hell, Alaric had taken many, many women to bed even while they'd been married, but Serenity had been too terrified of being 'punished' by him to ever voice her fury.

"I partook in some sexual relations, yes, but it was for mutual gratification and nothing more, my queen," Vegeta chuckled. "I'm a man, after all. But I'm also a very _busy_ man who's been at war for five years. There hasn't exactly been time to properly court and mate a woman, nor have there been any suitable candidates. Besides… there aren't many women on this planet anyway, let alone one that would be willing to do much else but fight."

And the responsibilities of being queen were much more than just fighting, Serenity knew that. "I imagine that not many warrior women would be content with getting pregnant and sitting at home while everyone else is out fighting battles." It certainly explained why the Saiyans' numbers were dwindling; so much fighting and not many pregnancies to compensate for the losses would drive them into extinction if they weren't careful.

"Exactly," Vegeta chuckled. "My first mate cared for me enough to do so, but the cabin fever had her climbing the walls and practically shrieking at me whenever I'd come home from a campaign." He smiled softly then as he thought of Kalera, but when Serenity looked up at him apologetically, he shook his head. "It was a good death," he informed her. "My mourning period was rough, but I got through it thanks to Raditz and Nappa. I owe them a great deal for all the times they pulled my ass out of bar fights and nursed my hangovers. Remember, my queen, that out of all my Elite, those two can be trusted implicitly no matter what. Raditz might be a pervert, but he would go down swinging in your defense in my absence, and Nappa is so staunchly loyal that it's simply staggering. And it doesn't hurt that he's already quite taken with you."

"Is there anyone I should be wary of?" Serenity asked hesitantly, hoping that the question wouldn't offend him.

"Bardock and his boys can be trusted unless there's gossip involved—Kakarot has a tendency to run his mouth sometimes— but other than them and Nappa, trust no one. You never know who may try to befriend you only to try and curry my favor. Paragus may be trusted too, since he's a high advisor. Oh gods, and before I forget to warn you… there is an Elite by the name of Broly—Paragus's son— that you should probably just steer clear of. Broly himself isn't exactly bad, but… his beast is highly unstable. I don't know why I ever let Paragus talk me into letting that boy live when he was first born," Vegeta muttered.

"Because it's wrong to kill a helpless infant?" Serenity supplied with a raised brow, her tone slightly angry as she felt his willingness to have killed the baby twenty years prior.

"The boy was born with a power level of ten thousand, woman," Vegeta snorted. Normally, he would have gotten angry with anyone for questioning his judgment over such an important thing, but her ignorance spared her from his fury. "He was even stronger at birth than I was at the time. Such power… it's not meant to be born into, Serenity. A warrior needs to grow into it in order to learn how to control it, or he runs the risk of becoming unstable. Like Broly. His beast sort of split with him when he hit puberty," he explained, "and the result is total and utter destruction against friend and foe alike whenever 'Kio' is riled. When he loses his shit, he doesn't discriminate over who he's crushing the life out of."

"I'm amazed that he hasn't tried to usurp you."

"Honestly, that was part of my fear when he was born, but that's not what Broly wants. I asked the boy once just what he and Kio wanted and they surprised me. They both agreed that they just want to be whole and stable, but… I truly have no idea how that will ever happen. Maybe if the boy takes a mate one day, but—"

"But even you wouldn't be crazy enough to try and suggest that he find one," Serenity finished for him.

"Exactly. I'm hoping that one day the boy will feel the pull and all of his problems will solve themselves, though I somewhat pity any mate he might find. He or she would most definitely have their work cut out for them."

"With his beast being so unstable, Vegeta, any mate of his would likely wind up as bad off as I was with Alaric," Serenity replied with a shudder.

"No, Sere, Saiyans don't work that way. Because of the bond, a Saiyan can't harm his mate; his beast simply wouldn't allow it. Now, sparring and sanctioned combat is another matter, but I don't think we'll be meeting in the ring anytime soon. I would have explained that to you during our negotiations, but something told me that you wouldn't believe me; I just decided to let you see it for yourself."

"Oh," she whispered, daring to look up at him timidly. "My apologies, my king, if I offended you in any way."

"You didn't know, _atti_. It's alright."

Twiddling her thumbs, her eyes locked on them, Serenity blushed as she finally voiced a question that had been bothering her. "What does _atti _mean?" She was surprised to feel a wave of embarrassment flooding the half-bond suddenly, and when she looked up, she found the king's face as red as her own.

"It, um… it's a term of endearment," he managed with a little strangled cough. Serenity didn't know, but if anyone found out that he'd been calling her that and how he was already feeling deep, strong affection for her… well, let's just say that he'd be the laughingstock of the Elite. Such feelings typically only came with the pull or over a long period of being mated, but Vegeta was inexplicably smitten with her already. "I'll stop saying it if you're bothered by it," he finally added when she fell silent.

"No, Vegeta… I don't mind. And again, I've upset you," she sighed heavily. "I'm sorry." Gods, who knew that the boogeyman of her people was capable of feeling such emotion, let alone capable of blushing! She could feel it through the bond, this odd mixture of warmth and caring blended with his own mortification and his worry that the Elite would find out that he… oh. He was scared that they would discover that he genuinely liked her? How silly was that! "Aren't we _supposed_ to be on friendly terms?" She chuckled.

"Yes, but not so quickly," he replied with a little growl. "Don't laugh at me, it's not funny, Sere."

Sensing that he was just grumping and not genuinely angry with her, she elbowed him teasingly. "No, I get it, my nieces and my daughter would be likely having heart attacks at the knowledge that I just might like you a little bit as well. You're not a bad man. The war killed so many, but… you started it for what you thought was the good of your people. I'm a queen; I get that, even if I don't condone it."

"Sere?"

The queen had been about to ask 'what?', but the way he suddenly running his lips up and down her neck drove the question right out of her head; it was obvious what he wanted and despite her flashback only a few minutes ago, her body was responding to his kisses and gentle petting enthusiastically. "Kay," she murmured, melting into him the moment his lips brushed over her own, her sex instinctively grinding against the hardening cock pushing up into her inner thigh.

"Do you trust me?" He breathed heatedly into her ear as he turned her slightly so that her back was once more pressing to his chest. "I promise not to hurt you, _atti_, I swear it on my tail." Vegeta went to her mark then, unable to deny his beast anymore; it was pounding away inside of his head, demanding that he sink his teeth into the creamy flesh as he joined their bodies, and while he held off on the latter, he gave in to the former, groaning at the taste of her silver-edged goddess's blood filling his mouth.

"Vegeta!" She yelped in reply, instantly rocking back into him, aching for him to fill her up in any position he wanted, just so long as she got off in the process. "Gods, please—"

"I asked you a question, _k'sha m'yo_," he growled softly before licking at her mark. "Do you trust me?"

"_Yes_," she whined, moving against him again, only to stiffen when he lifted her onto him and he sought entry, her body warring with her mind, half of her wanting to trust and surrender, the other half wanting only to panic and run.

"I can stop," he whispered, daring to adjust himself and slip the head of his cock into her, hoping that she would relax now that she knew what he'd been aiming for all along.

"No, no… don't stop," she panted, summing up every ounce of her courage to drop her weight down onto him, trembling as she took him to the hilt. He felt so massive in that position, and while he was stretching her flexing core to the point of discomfort, he wasn't hurting her. "I'm ok," she assured him when he paused and nipped at her mark, his hands sliding up to play with her nipples.

"Good. See, _k'sha_? I will only ever give you pleasure when we mate." Vegeta smiled into her neck as he kissed his way over to her cheek, turning her head so that he could kiss her lips in that strange but extremely pleasant way of her people, one of his hands sliding down to toy with her clit as he began to move inside of her gently.

Serenity came within minutes, moaning softly into the kiss as she surrendered to him fully, her body melting into his, her hips moving slowly as she helped ride him when he started to thrust into her a little bit harder. "Vegeta… feels so good…" She murmured between kisses, only to moan once more when his arms went around her tightly to lock her against him, his tail taking over for his fingers.

It had only been five minutes, but Vegeta was ready to come again. He could feel his balls tightening and his tail tingling in reaction, and while he tried like hell to hold back his pleasure so that he could prolong Serenity's, the sensation of her delicate hand petting his tail sent him over the edge and he groaned loudly, the sound echoing off the walls of the bathroom. "Gods damn it, woman," he purred hoarsely before lifting her off of him and turning her so he could kiss her thoroughly. "Bed… want more of you…"

The king sensed something through the bond then, and as he filled his hands with soft soap and hurriedly began to wash them both, he made it a point to push some more of his ki into her. His new queen had started to feel a little weak, and while it wasn't a typical Saiyan custom to give someone their own energy, he would do so for his mate until she grew accustomed to the gravity.

"Thank you," she whispered, her inhibitions shrinking with every gentle caress of his hands and the way his ki was filling her with an indescribable warmth, making her feel cocooned in safety.

"You're very welcome," he replied just as quietly, taking her in his arms despite the fact that he wasn't finished washing them yet. Their skin slid together from the soap and he couldn't help but crack a grin when he heard Serenity giggle at the sensation. "We could play the Soapy Saiyan if you'd like, my queen."

"Oh? What's that? Where I try to stay in your lap without sliding off and cracking my head on the tile!?" She laughed.

"I just made it up, so it can be!" He replied, his eyes and voice full of mirth as he nibbled at her lips, reflecting that he hadn't felt this light-hearted with a woman since Kalera. "Come on, let's rinse and get back to bed… if we don't, we're not leaving this tub for the rest of the night."

"At least we'll be clean!" Serenity was getting pruny though, so she helped the king wash his hair and tried her best not to laugh when the soap suds in his beard made him look like an old man, but she failed miserably and was rewarded with a little smirk. "Come on, Gramps, let's rinse you off before I get another giggle fit," she told him once she got herself under control.

"Hey, I might be a grandpa if a certain son of mine can get the ball rolling with your niece," he snorted. "Wait… or is she actually your cousin?"

"Half-sister, actually," Serenity corrected him absently as she pondered the younger Vegeta and how unlike his father he was. Was he that stony and antisocial in private? Ok, fine. It wasn't a stretch since she'd thought the king to be the same, but how could a young man such as the prince be so downright different from his own sire?

"Wait… what?" Vegeta stammered. "Explain that one?"

"Ami's half-brother, Pan, and my mom, Artemis. Wait… you didn't know that? She's my niece, yes, but Bulma is also my half-sister. We're not horribly close, but she's still kin. And no, that doesn't make Ami and me sisters," she giggled when she sensed his abject confusion through the half-bond. "Trust me, the Olympian family tree does not fork often, and I get just as confused as outsiders sometimes when recalling how we're all related. When I'm overthinking all of the ways I'm kin to people, I often thank my lucky stars that I was created out of clay and bits of my mother's hair blood, making me genetically sound."

"Wait," Vegeta grunted as he shook his head slowly. "I thought that Pan seduced your mother."

"He did," Serenity answered with a shrug, looking away in embarrassment as her cheeks colored. "_Both_ of my moms were there."

"Ooooh… lucky god," Vegeta murmured in slight awe.

"Well, he _is_ a god of lust and eroticism." Serenity shrugged a bit, slightly mortified over discussing the circumstances of her half-sister's conception, but mollified by the way her husband was purring as he ran his fingers through her lathered hair. "Hm… what are you thinking?" She asked absently as she felt him inwardly laughing hysterically despite the fact that he was only outwardly grinning.

"I'm thinking that the daughter of a lust god is right now, at this very minute, in a room right next to my son's. And that even if he is a clueless child when it comes to women, the whole Bulma situation just might fix itself if she's really half lust-goddess."

Unable to stop herself from snorting at that, Serenity just shook her head and laughed. "My king, you also forget that she's also Artemis's daughter! A vengeful goddess of the hunt! You know, she once turned a boy into a girl because she could sense his intentions to take advantage of her."

"Wait… she could do that? Really?" Vegeta asked, his eye twitching at the very notion. "I'll admit, I wouldn't be averse to experiencing sex as a woman, but… I think I would sorely miss my balls. Wouldn't have to tuck when I sat anymore, though," he mused.

"She also turned a man into a stag and let his own hunting dogs eat him for the crime of seeing her naked and also trying to take advantage," Serenity informed him with a devilish grin.

"That… I think I'd pass on." Rinsing the last of the soap from her hair and body, Vegeta inwardly sighed at the sight of her and couldn't stop himself from staring unabashedly. "Gods, woman, you're lovely. I've seen you nude already… would you turn me into a stag for wanting to take advantage of you for a few more hours?"

"Not at all," she replied with only a hint of her previous shyness. Oh no, she wasn't feeling nearly as shy as before; she definitely wanted him inside of her again and definitely wanted to know more of the pleasure he'd only just introduced her to. "And no more talk about your son," she added playfully. "Tonight's just for us, right?"

"Yes, but… while I won't admit it to him, I'm worried about the boy. The only thing that really gives me hope is that the pull is damned near impossible to fight. Even your cousin, sister, whatever-she-is will want to be in his presence, will crave seeing him and having him nearby. The pull is a wondrous thing, I'm telling you."

"Vegeta…"

"What?" She'd grown so grim and serious all of a sudden that he knew something was definitely bothering her, but Vegeta backed away from the half-bond and waited patiently, wanting his mate to voice her concerns without him intruding on her thoughts.

"Wouldn't you have preferred to wait for the pull?" Serenity asked softly. "The way I understand it, the pull is the equivalent of love at first sight, right?" When he nodded, she scratched her head for a moment before shaking it in confusion. "Wouldn't you have preferred that with a mate and a queen?"

"I suppose it would have been nice," he ventured honestly. "But Serenity, I'm a king. Kings need stability and heirs, and my feeling the pull for a third-class warrior… gods, I'd feel sorry for her…" He sighed and rubbed his beard as he tried to think of a way to explain it. "If I were to feel the pull, my mating with whoever it was would be accepted by the Saiyans people without question. But it would be a burden on the throne, as well. Anyone who wasn't born with a first class or Elite power level wouldn't have been groomed for leadership; they would have been infantry. To throw a third-class woman into this kind of life without any warning would just be cruel. She would want to fight; fighting would be all she knew in all likelihood. And she wouldn't have the first clue about diplomacy—yes, even Saiyans use diplomacy when dealing with certain people—and she wouldn't want to bear heirs. Sure, we would have felt the pull and we would have cared a great deal for each other, Serenity. But with my people to consider, waiting for the pull wouldn't be a prudent choice.

"Now, for anyone else who didn't need a queen and someone to bear children, waiting for the pull is ideal. In fact, many Saiyans do just that, which is why our population levels are hurting. The war wasn't the only problem. Nappa, for example? He's been waiting faithfully on the pull for two hundred years."

#######################################

"Mmm… wha…? Hoozit?"

"Damn it. Highness, my apologies, I—" Nappa's mouth stayed open in midsentence when the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen came onto his viewfinder, her hair tousled and eyes blurry from sleep, and his beast immediately began to purr in response, the purr box sounding rusty from disuse. "_Tapa'or m'eh chir_," he breathed in wondered.

"_F'ri d'in m'yo_," the exhausted looking beauty deadpanned before yawning widely and stretching, her perfect breasts rising up beneath the thin white camisole top she was wearing.

"_G'in buh'tir_," Nappa sighed, at a loss for what else to say.

"Wait… damn it, I can't see you, but that's not Kakarot I hear," the princess said slowly, suspicion creeping into her voice. "Who are you?"

"Nappa!" He said quickly, his beast practically climbing the walls upon seeing her rubbing her sleepy, beautiful blue eyes open. "Er… um, I mean, Nappa. I'm Nappa. Are you Ami?" _Dear gods, that was just sooo smooth, _he groaned mentally.

"Oh, the general," Ami said, no longer on alert as she fished for her glasses. "Not fucking you bloody, though," she added with a tiny smirk. "Though Turles already offered."

"It's an expression, princess, my um… apologies." _And I'm going to be having a conversation with the whelp once I'm through with this call, _his beast growled. "I didn't expect to ever see anyone so beautiful on the other end of this ancient scouter."

Finding her glasses, Ami discreetly rolled her eyes at the come-on, but when she put them on and turned back to the screen, she froze, her cheeks flushing and matching her lips, which were parted in surprise much as his had been. _Oh wow, I don't think I'd fuck him bloody, but I think I'd try my best, _was her first coherent thought, followed by the realization that she wasn't wearing much at all, and Ami turned every shade of the sunset as she quickly hunted for a sweater.

Nappa nearly fainted from the blood loss to his brain when she stood and he saw that she was only wearing panties below the waist, his pants immediately tenting at the sight of those creamy thighs when she moved off-screen. "_Heu… buh'tir. Buh'tir nu'or m'eh_," he whimpered helplessly.

"Um… help you with what?" Ami asked as she peeked her head back around to look at him.

_With the raging fucking pole tenting my pants! _He thought in a squeaky, panicky voice. "Hi," was all he managed.

"Yeeeaaah… hi," Ami replied in confusion before disappearing again, only to reappear fully dressed after another thirty seconds. "My apologies, General. None of us slept well last night after Queen Serenity gave us the news that she was offering herself as part of the peace treaty, so I was trying to catch a nap."

"Oh no, my apologies for waking you, Blue—er, I mean, Highness."

The way his face burned crimson made Ami's lips twitch, but she had no clue what she was doing to him when she looked up at him shyly through her eyelashes. "It's alright, Daddy calls me that, too."

_Oh gods, I could totally be your daddy, Blue. Bad thoughts! BAD! STOP THINKING SUCH BAD THOUGHTS ABOUT A WOMAN A TENTH OF YOUR AGE! _He screamed at his beast.

"Um… General, are you ok? You have… what appears to be a nosebleed. I know that can happen if you and your beast are fighting too hard… everything's alright, isn't it? Should I call a physician on the other line for you?" Ami asked softly, her voice full of nothing but sweet, gentle concern for him.

Either the gods had heard his plea and had taken mercy upon his pitiful, lonely soul, or Nappa had just gotten lucky, because he suddenly blurted out the whole reason he'd called. "Terraforming," he said quickly. "The queen told me that you're knowledgeable about it and said that I should call you and see about coming out to our system to show us how it's done so that we can terraform our other planets and we won't starve when the hot season hits in nine years," he let out in one huge rush, drawing a deep breath at the end of the sentence.

"Um… ok," Ami replied, still awfully concerned about his nosebleed and his odd behavior. Something was very off about this gorgeous, massive warrior, and while the sight of him had her blushing, it didn't have her acting crazy. "I'll see about having Usagi teleport me there in a few minutes, if you'd like. She had something that she wanted to give to her mother, anyway, so I could just deliver it for her."

"A few minutes!?" Nappa squeaked. _Oh shit, that's not enough time for me to go rub one out to calm my beast down a little bit!_

"Oh, gods, where's my head!" Ami said, smacking her own forehead lightly. "It's nightfall on Vegeta-sai, I'm so sorry, Nappa. You would have probably let me horribly inconvenience all of you, too, just to be polite. I'll see what I can do this afternoon and what I can put together, and then I'll ask Usa to teleport me there at about four in the morning our time. Is that acceptable?"

_Holy shit, the gods __**are**__ listening._ "Yes, Highness, thank you for your generosity. I'll be waiting in the throne room to escort you to the king, since he should be dining with his mate when you arrive." Nappa quickly exchanged farewells with the princess of Mercury then, and once the scouter was cut off he damned near fainted, slumping to the ground against a wall as his beast growled and purred and started trying to stage a hostile takeover. "Fuuuuck… I'm going to feel the pull in the morning when I meet her in person, aren't I!?" He whined. "Shiiiiiiiiit!"

Holding his giant bald head in his hands, he forced himself to take deep breaths and willed himself not to pass out. "Calm down," he told himself sternly. "It _could_ be the pull. But it might not be, either. It could just be an attraction to her that—oh, _**who am I kidding**_!?" He wailed to no one—grateful, in fact, that there was no one within earshot, "my beast never reacted like that before! Oh gods, I've been waiting for this for so long that I'd given up hope and now I don't even know what to do! She's too young! Far too young for the likes of me! Gaaaaah! I'm a dirty old man!"

**Haaaaa… so much fun writing that! Next up… a pairbonding ceremony with a few unexpected guests, and poor Ami meets Nappa… oh my.**


End file.
